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SEATTLE
— Microsoft Corp. and Skype announced late Thursday
that the software giant’s $8.5 billion acquisition of
the Internet phone company has formally closed.
Skype
now becomes a new business division within Microsoft.
Skype Chief Executive Tony Bates assumes the title of
president of the Skype division, and will report
directly to Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.
Skype
is expected to support Microsoft devices, including the
Xbox, Kinect, Windows Phone and other Windows devices,
and Microsoft will integrate Skype with its services
such as Lync, Outlook and Xbox Live.
The
Skype division will continue to offer its current
products to millions of users globally, according to a
Microsoft news release.
“Microsoft
and Skype will remain focused on their shared goal of
connecting all people across all devices and
accelerating both companies’ efforts to transform
real-time communications for consumers and enterprise
customers,” the release said.
The
release did not specify if the free Internet voice and
video calling features that Skype offers will continue
to be free. It also did not specify how Skype will
continue to work on non-Microsoft platforms, although
Microsoft has said in the past it would invest in and
support Skype clients on such platforms.
“Customers
should not see any changes to their Skype
experiences,” a Microsoft spokesperson said.
In
a video posted on both Microsoft’s and Skype’s
official blogs, Bates talks about the merger, saying:
“I’m sure in a lot of people’s minds post-merger
is the simple question: Will the Skype experience
change? The answer is an emphatic no. The value
proposition of Skype is being multiplatform across
different devices, whether it’s PCs, desktops, mobile
phones, whether it’s in the living room. And that’s
key and that must stay. We’re committed to that.”
But
he did not specify in the video whether free and
low-cost Skype services would remain that way.
He
did say in the news release that, together with
Microsoft, “we will be able to accelerate Skype’s
goal to reach 1 billion users daily.”
Ballmer
said in the release that “Skype is a phenomenal
product and brand that is loved by hundreds of millions
of people around the world. We look forward to working
with the Skype team to create new ways for people to
stay connected to family, friends, clients and
colleagues — anytime, anywhere.”
Microsoft
announced its plan to purchase Skype — its biggest
acquisition ever — last May. The purchase had to get
regulatory clearance from several countries and regions
before it could be finalized. It won the approval of
U.S. anti-trust regulators last June and cleared the
European Union last week.
The
acquisition is still under review in a few countries,
and will be completed in those countries when such
reviews are closed, the news release says.
About
170 million people a month use Skype for voice and video
calls and text messages over the Internet, either free
or at rates cheaper than most landline and wireless
calls.
Skype
employees will continue to be located in offices around,
including in Estonia, Czech Republic, Russia, Sweden,
United Kingdom, Luxembourg, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong,
and United States, according to the news release.
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