Skype
Skype (/skaɪp/) is a proprietary telecommunications application operated by Skype Technologies, a division of Microsoft, best known for VoIP-based videotelephony, videoconferencing and voice calls. It also has instant messaging, file transfer, debit-based calls to landline and mobile telephones (over traditional telephone networks), and other features. It is available on various desktop, mobile, and video game console platforms.
Logo of Skype (2019–present) | |||||||||||||
Screenshot of Skype version 8 for Windows desktop | |||||||||||||
| Original author(s) | Priit Kasesalu and Jaan Tallinn | ||||||||||||
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| Developer(s) | Skype Technologies (Microsoft) | ||||||||||||
| Initial release | 29 August 2003 | ||||||||||||
| Stable release(s) [±] | |||||||||||||
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| Operating system | Windows, Windows Phone, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, iPadOS, WatchOS, Wear OS, HoloLens, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S | ||||||||||||
| Available in | 108 languages | ||||||||||||
| Type | Videoconferencing, VoIP and Instant messaging | ||||||||||||
| License | Proprietary software | ||||||||||||
| Website | skype.com | ||||||||||||
| Part of a series on |
| Skype |
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mobile applications |
Skype was created by Niklas Zennström, Janus Friis, and four Estonian developers, and first released in August 2003. In September 2005, eBay acquired it for $2.6 billion. In September 2009, Silver Lake, Andreessen Horowitz, and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought 65% of Skype for $1.9 billion from eBay, valuing the business at $2.92 billion. In May 2011, Microsoft bought Skype for $8.5 billion and used it to replace their Windows Live Messenger. As of 2011, most of the development team and 44% of all the division's employees were in Tallinn and Tartu, Estonia.
Skype originally featured a hybrid peer-to-peer and client–server system. It became entirely powered by Microsoft-operated supernodes in May 2012; in 2017, it changed from a peer-to-peer service to a centralized Azure-based service. As of February 2023, it was used by 36 million people each day.