Instead of quickly fixing the underlying issues, Microsoft spent years trying to redesign Skype. Skype became unreliable, at a time when rivals were continuing to offer solid alternatives that incorporated messaging functionality that actually worked and synced across devices. The transition lasted years, and resulted in calls, messages, and notifications repeating on multiple devices. All of this was powered by Microsoft’s transition away from Skype’s traditional P2P networks, but it was messy. Skype also appeared on the web as part of in 2013.
#HOW MANY PEOPLE CAN DO SCREEN SHARING IN SKYPE WINDOWS 8.1#
Skype also became the default messaging app for Windows 8.1 back in 2013, and even shipped as part of Microsoft’s big Kinect push for the Xbox One console in the same year. Microsoft transitioned Skype from these P2P networks to cloud-powered servers back in 2013, in order to capitalize on Skype integration on Windows Phone and improve its mobile apps in general. This is where a lot of Microsoft’s Skype problems began. The company had acquired a service that was based on peer-to-peer (P2P) technology, which made it less efficient on mobile devices. Microsoft had one big problem to solve early on, though. Surprisingly, Microsoft opted to ditch its own popular Windows Live Messenger service in favor of Skype to try and ward off competition. Microsoft’s Skype acquisition came just as chat apps like WhatsApp, Messenger, Snapchat, and WeChat were starting to gain momentum and challenge Skype’s dominance. But Microsoft faced some big challenges early on to transform Skype into a profitable business and keep it relevant for consumers. Three years later, the verb was added to the Oxford English Dictionary, highlighting how popular the service had become.
Skype had become so big that in 2011 The Onion joked that “Skype” would be added to the dictionary. Skype was the main way consumers actually talked to each other over the internet, with video calls making up 40 percent of all Skype usage back in 2011. Skype had more than 100 million active users back then, and 8 million of those were paying to use the service to make and receive calls using the voice over internet protocol (VoIP). It was the same year that Zoom and Snapchat were founded, and Apple launched its iPhone 4S. Microsoft originally acquired Skype for $8.5 billion back in 2011. It’s a unique once in a decade situation that’s highlighted Microsoft’s beleaguered Skype acquisition in a big way. In recent weeks we’ve seen people across the world sheltering at home and holding virtual yoga classes, beers with friends, and even school classes all over Zoom.
Instead, rivals like Zoom and Houseparty are having a moment of huge growth in 2020 thanks to consumers looking for Skype alternatives. If the coronavirus pandemic had swept across the world in 2011, everyone would have been using Skype to connect over video and voice calls.