When you think about video chat in the workplace these days, there is little question that Zoom and Microsoft Teams dominate the conversation. However, not too long ago, it was all about Skype as this telecommunications platform allowed you to instant message, videoconference, and video chat with anyone, anywhere in the world.
The best part is that Skype wasn’t just limited to the workforce as millions of everyday users downloaded the application as well. Now more than 20 years old, the history of Skype is a fascinating one as it no doubt laid the groundwork for programs like Zoom, FaceTime, and even Google Duo that play such a significant role in our professional and personal lives today.
Quick Facts
- Creator (person)
- Niklas Zennström, Janus Friis
- Original Price
- Free Download With Monthly/Per Call Fees
- Operating System
- Windows, iOS, Mac OS, Android, Linux, Maemo, Kindle Fire
- Developed By (company)
- Skype Group
What Happened to Skype: Video Edition
When it comes to telling the history of Skype’s rise and fall, no one does it better than CNBC. In just over 15 minutes, the beloved financial news channel tells a clear-cut story of how Skype came to fruition and how it began to falter, eventually allowing apps like Zoom to grab market share.
What’s hard to understand is how Microsoft purchased Skype, already a well-used platform, while also launching Microsoft Teams in parallel. The reality is that Teams is far and away the better application these days, but don’t tell that to fans of Skype, as this video shows.
What Is Skype?: Explained
Skype is an extremely popular software application that allows users to make voice calls over the Internet, as well as online chat, file transfer, and video conferencing. Its development in 2002 was financed by the Skype Group, founded by Swedish entrepreneur Niklas Zennström and the Dane Janus Friis, who already had experience in venture IT business, founding Kazaa Media Desktop (once capitalized as “KaZaA”, but now usually written “Kazaa”) in 2001 as a peer-to-peer file-sharing application.
The name came from one of the initial names for the project — SKY PEer-to-peer, which was then abbreviated to Skyper. It appeared, however, that some of the domain names associated with Skyper had already been taken. Dropping the final left the current title, for which domain names were available.
Phone Company Competition
Skype became a serious competitor for phone companies because it provides almost free phone services to each user with a downloaded program and Internet connection. With the growing popularity of wireless networks, the business of pure phone service providers may decline compared with this software client.
VOIP
The application uses a proprietary Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) network called the Skype protocol. The company has not made the protocol publicly available, and official applications are closed-source. The main difference between this application and standard VoIP clients is that the software application operates on a peer-to-peer model (based initially on the Kazaa software) rather than the typical client-server model.
The user directory is entirely decentralized and distributed among the network nodes, i.e., users’ computers, thus allowing the network to scale very easily to large sizes without a complex centralized infrastructure that would be costly to the Skype Group.
In April 2006, the number of registered users reached 100 million. This number reached 530 million in 2009 and 663 million in September 2011. The international call market share of the company increased from 2.9% in 2005 to 40% in 2014. The estimated number of worldwide users in 2022 is 1.95 billion.
How to Use Skype
This video and call and VOIP application offer both free and paid services. Calls with this application to other program users and, in some countries, free-of-charge numbers are free, while calls to other landlines and mobile phones can be made for a fee. For example, $2.99 per month currently gets unlimited calls in the United States. You can choose to purchase Skype Credit instead of a subscription plan. A tutorial can help you navigate signing up for a subscription.
In order to start using Skype, it’s as simple as downloading the software application on your laptop, desktop, or mobile device. The following operating systems and devices currently support Skype:
You can use a video tutorial or follow the steps to create an account. To create an account, Skype doesn’t require proof of identification, but you must enter your first name, last name, email address, country, and language. Your email address isn’t shared with other users.
Skype offers many tutorial videos and articles to help you place your first call. Start by creating a contact list to call friends and family quickly. These contacts can be landlines, mobile phones, or other accounts.
Select the video call or phone call feature and ensure you have a strong internet connection to place a call. You may need to allow permission to the app to use your camera and microphone for a conversation.
How To Learn More About Skype
Many online videos and articles help you learn how to use this application. Follow the Goodwill Community Foundation step-by-step guide or a similar reputable guide to learn more about this application. Find a guide you make the most of the dynamic features of this convenient application:
- HD video calling
- Screen sharing
- Audio calling for landlines and mobile phones
- Call recording
- Live subtitles
- Smart messaging
Skype uses a secure communication protocol with encryption that cannot be disabled and is invisible to the user. The application reportedly uses non-proprietary, widely trusted encryption techniques: RSA for key negotiation and the Advanced Encryption Standard to encrypt conversations. It provides an uncontrolled registration system for users with no proof of identity.
The Difference Between Skype vs. Zoom
This popular Microsoft offering isn’t the only video and VoIP application available for personal and business calls. Zoom is another popular option that offers clear video and convenient features.
Both applications allow you to create free video calls with up to 100 participants. Zoom, however, allows you to pay for up to 1,000 participants, compared with the Microsoft Teams plan for Skype, which is limited to only 300 people. Zoom also includes breakout session capabilities, virtual hand-raising, and other features best suited to large groups and formal meetings.
Skype may be a better option if you’re looking for a personal conversation tool since it currently has more worldwide users. Larger business plans are part of the Microsoft Teams package, which includes additional services for your convenience.
The Difference Between Skype vs. Google Duo
Google Duo is another popular video-calling service that offers many benefits. While it’s free and convenient for iOS and Android phones, Google Duo doesn’t offer instant messaging or group calls. This video-calling app is connected to your Google account, making signing in and talking with other Google users easy. Consider Microsoft’s software client if you want to use VoIP services, schedule group meetings, or call mobile phone numbers using your account.
The Difference Between Skype vs. FaceTime
FaceTime is a competitor offered by Apple. This video calling service is automatically installed on Apple devices, making it an easy option for iPhone users to have a video conversation. Unfortunately, it isn’t available for Windows or Linux users.
FaceTime also lacks VoIP services, group calls, and online chat features. Like Google Duo, FaceTime offers a convenient setup process but significantly fewer features for free or paying users.
Skype Release History
Now, versions of this VoIP application exist not only for Linux, Mac OS, and Windows, but also for Maemo, iPhone OS, Android, and even Sony’s PSP. The domain names Skype.com and Skype.net were registered in April 2003.
Skype Beta, 2003
In August 2003, the application released the first public beta version of the program. The application’s code was written by Estonian developers Ahti Heinla, Priit Kasesalu, and Jaan Tallinn, who had also originally developed Kazaa. They used several IDEs and languages—Delphi, C, and C++- to develop initial software clients for several operating systems, such as Windows, Linux, and Mac OS.
Skype Purchased by Microsoft, 2011
The app was sold to eBay in San Jose, California, in September 2005 for approximately 2.5 billion USD. In May 2011, Microsoft purchased the application from eBay for 8.5 billion USD. Furthermore, Microsoft discontinued two of its products: Windows Live Messenger and Lync.
Fast forward to 2024, and Skype is very much alive. However, Skype has slowly shifted from being a dominant video chat platform to a stronger focus on text-based communication. The company has since overhauled Skype multiple times to help it compete better with Zoom and Teams.
However, the rise of Teams as a dominant work and video chat system under Microsoft begs the question of how long Skype will survive. As of the end of 2023, Skype still had 36 million daily users, down from 40 million in 2020. Compared to 320 million daily users of Microsoft Teams, one has to imagine that Microsoft won’t want two competing platforms operating forever.