Microsoft(US:MSFT) 券商中国·2025-05-07 01:25Core Viewpoint - Microsoft officially discontinued Skype on May 5, 2023, after over 20 years of operation, transitioning its core functionalities to Teams to better meet current customer needs [2]. Group 1: Company Transition - Skype's services will be replaced by Microsoft Teams, which emphasizes chat functionalities and team collaboration [2]. - Existing Skype users can log into Teams for free using their original accounts, with chat history and contacts automatically migrated [2]. Group 2: User Statistics and Historical Context - Skype was launched in 2003 and quickly disrupted the fixed-line phone industry, becoming a household name with hundreds of millions of users at its peak [2]. - Microsoft acquired Skype in 2011 for $8.5 billion when it had approximately 150 million monthly active users, but this number plummeted to 23 million by 2020 [2]. - The decline in Skype's user base is attributed to its technology becoming outdated in the mobile internet era and increasing competition in the industry [2]. Group 3: Current Status of Teams - Microsoft Teams currently boasts around 320 million monthly active users, indicating a successful transition and adoption of the platform [2].