Microsoft to retire Messenger, replace it with Skype

Desmond

Desmond

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Microsoft has announced it intends to "retire" its instant message chat tool and replace it with Skype's messaging tool.

The news comes 18 months after the software giant announced it was paying $8.5bn (£5.3bn) for the communications software developer.

Microsoft said Windows Live Messenger (WLM) would be turned off by March 2013 worldwide, with the exception of China.

It reflects the firm's determination to focus its efforts on Skype.

WLM launched in 1999 when it was known as MSN Messenger. Over time, photo delivery, video calls and games were added to the package's text-based messages.

In 2009, the firm said it had 330 million active users.

"Skype's top-up services offer the chance to monetise its users and Microsoft is also looking towards opportunities in the living room.
Skype screenshot Skype is offering a tool to migrate users WLM contacts to its service

"Messenger doesn't seem like an appropriate communications platform for TVs or the firm's Xbox console - but Skype does."

He also noted that the firm had opted to integrate Skype into its new Windows Phone 8 smartphone software, eclipsing the effort to integrate WLM into the message threads of the operating system' previous version.

To ease the changeover, Microsoft is offering a tool to migrate WLM messenger contacts over.

The risk is that the move encourages users to switch instead to rival platforms such as WhatsApp Messenger, AIM or Google Talk.

But Microsoft is at least partially protected by its tie-up with Facebook last year. Skype video calls are now offered as an extra to the social network's own instant messaging tool.
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Desmond

Desmond

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But now that they have Skype, they have the bulk of Skype users in addition to messenger users (which remain).
 
RCuber

RCuber

The Mighty Unkel!!!
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shaurya.malik88 said:
Ha, good. My workplace still use Messenger - most of us hate it! Maybe now we will switch to something else!
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your IT department must upgrade to Unified Communications Solution - Microsoft Lync , its for enterprises whose backend runs on Microsoft products. its pretty much standard in most companies.
 
N

noob

Cyborg Agent
I can't wait until they call Windows Live Skype Online Internet Messenger.

Windows Live MSN Messaging Program is a perfectly cromulent name.
The geniuses at Microsoft's PR and Marketing departments need to be dragged into he street and shot. I have never seen an organization try so hard to confuse people. For example, if I want to check my Hotmail, I go to Live.com and sign in with my Microsoft Account (formerly known as my Windows Live ID).
Oh, and I can also go to Outlook.com and and check that same email address... but this time it's with Outlook's new UI. And if I want a new email address I can pick from @msn, @hotmail, and @outlook.
Simple and intuitive, isn't it?
It seems like MS has finally realized the cluster**** they've created. However, it will take a years and years before it's all straightened out. JUST PICK ONE ****ING NAME AND STICK WITH IT. GOOD LORD.
I half expect that they'll change everything to "bmail" (Bingmail) soon enough.
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abhijit_reddevil

abhijit_reddevil

Manchester United
DeSmOnD dAvId said:
Does it?
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Group text based chat is free on Skype, video calls between 2 people are free on Skype but once you want to do a video conference with 3 or more people Skype will be a beggar and ask for money.:p Usually I talk to my relatives at multiple locations on Skype at the same time but use the Yahoo Messenger's webcam feature and Skype's voice call feature to do the video conference...:p, thereby bypassing Skype's tricks...:)
 
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