Skype is shutting down after 22 years of service, with Microsoft switching users to Teams
It’s official: video call platform Skype, once one of the world’s most popular websites and an icon of the 2000s internet era, will no longer be available from May 2025, Microsoft announced on X this morning.
Founded in 2003, Skype quickly became one of the largest video and voice call carriers globally, counting 52 million active users just two years after launch. The company was acquired by Microsoft in 2011 for $8.5 billion, integrating the service with its other products like Xbox and Windows devices.
While the rise of other video conferencing services like Zoom during the pandemic — as well as the introduction of Windows 11 in 2021, which had Microsoft’s Teams app integrated by default — can be pointed to as the beginning of the end for Skype, Google Search data suggests that the platform had been losing ground for some time.
Skype will now be replaced with the free version of Microsoft Teams, with users maintaining their message history, group chats, and contacts — but, per The Verge, Skype’s domestic and international call carrier services will be lost with the move.
Founded in 2003, Skype quickly became one of the largest video and voice call carriers globally, counting 52 million active users just two years after launch. The company was acquired by Microsoft in 2011 for $8.5 billion, integrating the service with its other products like Xbox and Windows devices.
While the rise of other video conferencing services like Zoom during the pandemic — as well as the introduction of Windows 11 in 2021, which had Microsoft’s Teams app integrated by default — can be pointed to as the beginning of the end for Skype, Google Search data suggests that the platform had been losing ground for some time.
Skype will now be replaced with the free version of Microsoft Teams, with users maintaining their message history, group chats, and contacts — but, per The Verge, Skype’s domestic and international call carrier services will be lost with the move.
