Video calling service Skype is set to shut down on Monday. This website used to be one of the most popular ones of its kind before others like Zoom, Teams, and WhatsApp took over. Its use eventually declined with its owner, Microsoft choosing to focus on Teams. Its services will close for good on May 5 with the Skype for Business feature the only part to remain.
Microsoft says Skype’s free services would be retired, with users having the option to move over to Teams, or export their Skype data including chats, contacts and call history.
“The timing of this shift is driven by the significant advancements and adoption of Microsoft Teams,” a Microsoft spokesperson said, adding that Teams offered “many of the same core features” as Skype. Microsoft also said that Skype for Business would remain unaffected.
READ: Amazon-backed Anthropic raises $3.5 billion (March 4, 2025)
For Skype customers who pay a subscription or have credits to make calls to landlines and mobiles, they will be able to use Skype Dial Pad on Teams. When their credit or subscription ends, there will be no way to continue using it.
Teams offers features similar to Skype, including one-on-one and group calls, messaging, and file sharing. While Skype was primarily designed for smaller groups (up to 20 participants) and casual use, Teams is more business-focused, accommodating up to 10,000 participants in a single video call. It also comes with advanced security features and various integrations, such as Evernote, OneDrive, Office 365, Salesforce, SharePoint, Trello, and more. Other alternatives include Zoom, WebEx, Discord, Slack, and Signal.
While the number of Skype users declined in recent years, the platform still had millions of users, numbering almost 28 million as of March 2024. For many, this moment feels like the end of an era, with the service having facilitated many important moments, and allowed countless people to stay in touch with their loved ones.