EBay Sells Skype To Marc Andreessen

Julefrokost writes "Computerworld has a story about eBay selling Skype. Marc Andreessen, co-founder of Netscape, along with a group of investors, are reported to have paid $2 billion for Skype. According to the New York Times, Google was also a potential buyer. Also, the original founders of Skype are said to have placed a bid, but Marc Andreessen & Co was the highest bidder."

I hope they improve it... as it was.

[xtracto]

I hope the new owners make it better and re-incorporate the functionality it had before.

I really miss Skypecasts, it was a really useful tool for practicing languages and having informal meetings (moderation, talk turns, etc)...

Just today I spent about an hour looking for a skypecast alternative where I could practice my German with others (maybe first only hearing and talking a bit later).

Skype worth half the value of Marvel?

[Demoriel]

Is Skype really worth half the value of Marvel? Disney got an amazing deal...

Internet black magic not dead yet

[Drakkenmensch]

Yet another free service gets snapped up for billions, in the hopes that it will somehow generate more than the expended value in ad revenue. Either that or some other magical source of cash influx that will not be spent by its users who are used to getting it free and will jump ship if subscription models become mandatory.

It seems a lot of people still believe that when the internet is involved, tried and true business rules and plain old common sense do not apply. Is the black magic of the interwebs not dead yet?

Re:Buy now!!!

[AmigaMMC]

I think Google (and myself) are better off with Google Voice. I never liked skype and if you look at prices for making calls to landlines and cellphones in Europe they're more expensive than the alternative. With Google voice I can call Europe for 2 cents a minute from any U.S. phone, without having to log onto my computer.

Re:Skype worth half the value of Marvel?

[kestasjk]

Does Skype even make money..?

I hope they'll opensource it

[BESTouff]

As Skype's money seem to be made only on pc-to-phone calls, I hope they'll open their protocol to other clients and just act as a sort of SIP-to-phone platform. If users can connect from other clients, that could be a win.

Re:Buy now!!!

[bberens]

I realize they provide only related (but similar) service, but Vonage is now like $30/mo (after taxes) and you can call anywhere in the world for free. I have friends in India who are dropping their local land lines in exchange for an American Vonage account so they can make cheap calls within their own neighborhood. That's pretty wild :) The telecomm revolution is underway kids. Next up, cable.

Re:Buy now!!!

[CopaceticOpus]

They aren't the same thing at all. With Google Voice, you still need some kind of phone service to make calls. In fact, one cost effective way to use Google Voice is to combine it with Skype.

It would be nice if Google provided an internet phone service as part of Google Voice. I'm currently looking into using Google Voice in combination with Gizmo5 [gizmovoice.com], which looks very promising. Whether Skype or Gizmo5 is a less expensive pairing for Google Voice depends on your usage patterns - Gizmo5 is cheaper up front, but Skype offers unlimited domestic calling for a set price.

If anyone has experience with this, please share your advice. I have been annoyed by Skype's billing policies and customer service lately, which is what is making me want to switch.

Surprised? Oh my yes...

[Nefarious Wheel]

The fact that the "underlying P2P" technology was not property of Skype made me wonder about the possibility of the technology owners enabling eavesdropping mechanisms behind closed doors..

Sometimes it takes a very long time for the penny to drop. Ah, I'm getting old.

Could it possibly be that a *much* larger organisation than the Hollywood studios is actually behind the drive to quash P2P technology universally?

Follow the money, they say. Now... it's not a question of who would benefit most, but who would lose the most if P2P was allowed to roam free?

Next question - Who is shaping down P2P network traffic without telling us? The ISP's? And they're owned by...

The Telcos. Yep, all of them. Chargeable point to point telecommunications are under threat, copper and cell both - people are still charged by the call, not by the TCP/IP connection. It's bread and butter.

Telcos have the most to fear by the proliferation of Skype, Ventrilo, TeamSpeak et.al...

I know correlation isn't causation, but it sure as hell draws your eye. Big question here: are the Telcos, behind the odd blind financing dodges, actually bankrolling the fight against P2P technologies?

Think ... SCO epic to kill Linux; beyond the obvious threat to Microsoft, the comms are a bit too "open" to make the telcos really comfortable. The RIAA - yes, we know the record companies are bringing suit, and we know what they're like, but isn't P2P technology an enabler of free phone calls?

I know this is tinfoil hat stuff, but I also consider that people who make it to the strategy-deciding levels at communications firms do know a bit about communications strategies. P2P is aimed squarely at their wallets. If I were a bastard in their position it's what I'd do. And in the aggregate, I think they outweigh Microsoft and all the record companies too, no?