On the backdrop of reports of Google and Facebook partnering with Skype, reports have now claimed that Microsoft intends to buy the VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) company for close to $8 billion.
Wall Street Journal has said this in a recent report citing its own sources, which in a way confirms the rumours earlier published by GigaOm.
The Microsoft-Skype deal would be a big push for the Windows based smartphones. The possibility of making free calls using Skype on Windows Phones may prove to be tempting for many users, though phone to phone VoIP calls are not allowed in India yet. Only those calls which originate from computers are allowed in India right now.
Another interesting possibility for users may be use of Kinect, another Microsoft product which helps in making video calls, in combination with Skype. The Kinect-Skype combine would enable users to talk to their friends and family through high quality video calls using their televisions. These calls may originate from TV sets and end up on devices such as iPhone, iPad, Android, and of course Windows Phone 7 phones. The reverse may also be possible.
Skype was founded in 2003 and was later bought by eBay in 2005, which then sold its stake to a private investment group. Even earlier, Microsoft has revealed that Skype would soon be available on Windows Phone 7 devices. So one thing’s for sure, the interest from the company is already there.