This majority stake was bought by a group of investors led by private equity firms Silver Lake and Andreessen Horowit. Shares in Microsoft ended the day in New York down 0. In contrast, eBay - which owns a stake in Skype - saw its share price rally 2. Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer said: "Skype is a phenomenal service that is loved by millions of people around the world.
As always with these things, the many tech industry pundits and analysts will look at this deal from all possible angles and then some, and still only a handful will end up being somewhat accurate when we look back in a couple of years. From a non-financial point of view, the acquisition makes a ton of sense today, though.
Microsoft's own software already has considerable overlap with Skype. Windows Live Messenger offers free instant messaging, and voice- and video-chat. It currently boasts around million active users each month, typically with around 40 million online at any one moment.
Microsoft has an equivalent corporate-oriented system, Lync formerly Office Communication Server that allows companies to create private networks that combine the communications capabilities of Live Messenger with corporate manageability. The underlying technology of both platforms is common, allowing interoperability between Live Messenger and Lync.
The company also plans to integrate Kinect into Lync to create more natural virtual presences. Skype, in contrast, has around a third the number of active users: million each month.
It also has fewer simultaneous online connections: typically million. Its instant messaging and voice and video call features are broadly similar to those found in Windows Live Messenger, though arguably more refined. We may collect cookies and other personal information from your interaction with our website.
For more information on the categories of personal information we collect and the purposes we use them for, please view our Notice at Collection. Become a Member Sign In.
0コメント