Africa-Press – Namibia. Skype, the iconic video calling and messaging app used by around 300 million people, is closing down for good as of May 5, according to its parent company Microsoft.
The live messaging and video calling service launched 22 years ago, will be retired within hours – with users warned to take steps to keep hold of their chat history.
Microsoft has urged users to transition to Teams by visiting skype.com and utilizing the “Start using Teams” feature. All Skype chats and contacts will remain accessible through Teams using the same login credentials.
Users have until January 2026 to download or migrate their data before permanent deletion.
“Skype is retiring in May 2025, and we want to make sure you have enough time to make a decision. If you see your friends already using Microsoft Teams Free it’s a good time to give it a go,” the service said in a post on X.
The announcement to shut down the once popular communication service was first made in February 2025 after facing stiff competition from Apple’s FaceTime and Meta’s WhatsApp.
Skype’s popularity has faded in recent years. It was launched in 2003 in Estonia and quickly caught on as a way to make free calls worldwide, as an option for expensive international calls on traditional phones.
The service quickly became popular, leading eBay to buy it in 2005 for $2.6 billion. However, the partnership did not work out, and eBay sold its 65% stake in Skype to an investor group for $1.9 billion in 2009 before Microsoft bought it in 2011.
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