Comments for eBay's $2.025 Billion Sale Of Skype Complete

eBay's $2.025 Billion Sale Of Skype Complete

2009-11-20T07:04:15Z

eBay has successfully unloaded Skype. They remain a minority stakeholder, but 70% of Skype has been sold to a group that includes the original co-founders of the internet telephony company.

Let's hope that they'll left behind that famous eBay customer service, as well.

(Photo: Ryan Fanshaw)

Comment from Pihir on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:32:09Z

Step one: Create company
Step two: Sell company
Step three: Profit
Step four: Buy back company
Wait...what?!

Comment from futurix on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:32:09Z

I hope the sale means that Skype's future is secure!

I use it for video conferencing with my parents (me in UK, them in Russia) and it saved me hundreds of pounds so far. Then again these are Skype-to-Skype calls, so I'm not paying anything to anyone - and this is hardly a very profitable business model.

Comment from Fuel13 on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:32:09Z

@quail: Why not get Google Voice for free?

Comment from GrymOne on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:32:09Z

"It's gotta' be a pretty niche market, right? I'm guessing that's why eBay sold the company back. "
Do you know how many businesses use Skype as a cheap alternative?
Or How about:
"Lenovo and Skype have agreed to preload Skype for Windows software on millions of computers, beginning immediately. Every ThinkPad laptop and ThinkCentre desktop PC distributed worldwide will include Skype software."

Comment from quaru on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:32:08Z

@WraithSama: Hard telling, I know I use skype all the time, as it's the best cross-platform video-chat.. thing.

Comment from KMan13 still wants a Pontiac G8 on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:49Z

@GitEmSteveDave_HazEnvy: I wish lol

Comment from midwestkel on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:48Z

@GitEmSteveDave_HazEnvy @CompyPaq @DangerMouth @admiral_stabbin: When they finally got ahold of PayPal they were told that they had to fax in drivers license, social security number, bank account information to verify who they were. They were told it can take up to 120 days for PayPal to make a decision on giving the money back.

Comment from nstonep on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:45Z

@GitEmSteveDave_HazEnvy: You win.

Comment from baristabrawl on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:44Z

For $3 a month I can make phone calls from my computer or wireless phone. It's easy.

Comment from Triterion on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:31Z

@WraithSama: Skype is a good alternitave for a home phone line. Home phone lines through a phone company are crazy expensive, 30 dollars a month? No thanks...

Comment from incident_man on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:25Z

@quail: I thought about getting a Skype number, but decided on MagicJack instead. $19.95 per year is a lot better than $60, and I can use my own phone with it.

Comment from admiral_stabbin on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:25Z

@DangerMouth: Alas, when eBay tried to call PayPal customer service to get help with this unfortunate situation, the web page that gives the phone number and requisite pin code for getting to a human...was broken.

Comment from j-o-h-n on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:25Z

@quail: Or you can have Google Voice for free...

Comment from NumberFiveIsAlive on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:24Z

So they made a small profit, but by the time you factor in listing fees and Final Value Fees, it's definitely a loss.

Comment from MrEvil on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:24Z

I've been pleased with Skype's rates for unlimited outbound calling. I have a plan just in case I'm in an area where my cell doesn't work but the stronger antennae on my Laptop give me better data reception.

However, I don't think I'll renew depending on what Google does with Gizmo5 and their voice service. I'm much more interested in VOIP that uses an industry standard which can be used with almost any SIP equipment.

Comment from chrisholland03 on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:23Z

I wonder what eBay's return policy is on this sale...

Comment from ElizabethD on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:23Z

I love Skype.

OK, that's out of the way. I'm really just here to say: THANK GOD ALMIGHTY, FREE TO COMMENT AT LAST!!!!

Comment from pecan 3.14159265 on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:23Z

@WraithSama: If they received that money in gold Krugerrands, I know a company that will gladly take them and give them extremely valuable cats.

Comment from Snarkysnake on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:22Z

I love Skype because it is really useful to provide an "on demand" phone line at my second home. I have dry loop DSL there (which also functions as my cable TV because so much content is free online) and only have to power up my computer ,plug in my Skype headset and instant phone. Makes a great loop with my home base for free.

Comment from DangerMouth on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:21Z

@GitEmSteveDave_CanCommentz: @CompyPaq:

Skype then demanded to the tracking number, which eBay was unable to provide, so they left negative feedback claiming eBay was actually a Nigerian scammer.

Comment from AK47 - Now with longer screen name! on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:21Z

@quail: That may be why the original founders bought it back - perhaps they think they can do a better job than eBay and make it relevant again.

Comment from Adhominem on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:21Z

@quail: ebay is terrible at management. they could do so much better.

Ebay used to be the premiere place to shop for things online. Now you only go if you're trying to get rid of some junk that's been laying around or you're trying to scam people

Comment from Synth3t1c on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:20Z

@CompyPaq @GitEmSteveDave_CanCommentz: EPIC. This was awesome!

Comment from quail on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:20Z

@WraithSama: Skype makes the most sense for people who call others overseas. It's also great as a message service if you pay for a phone number. It's cheap. The only downside to it is that I wonder if my ISP, who sells phone service, throttles down the bandwidth when I make a Skype call. Or were those problems due to eBay's management?

Comment from quail on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:20Z

One cool thing about Skype is that you can use it as a message service. For about US$60 a year you get a phone number for anywhere you want, and can have it on your business cards or whatever. Extremely economical and it keeps salesmen from having your cell phone number if that's what you happen to use for business.

You can then hear your messages off any PC or web enabled smart phone.

Glad that eBay sold it. eBay has got to have some of the worst marketers in the world not to have gotten Skype more prominent on the net. There's a lot of great things it did first and did well.

Comment from G.O.B.: Come on! on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:19Z

Why would some of the co-founders want it back? They made off with the loot the first time; now they might take the hit for a service that is in decline.

Comment from Toffeecake on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:19Z

If there's going to be a good Black Friday deal on Skype phones at Walmart, I'm getting one to use as my landline!

Thanks for putting the comments back up, Consumerist! By the way, I got a peek at the new layout last night, it looks really spiffy.

Comment from WraithSama on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:19Z

@Trai_Dep:
Even though they're buying it back for slightly more than they sold it for, I'd still call it a good deal for the co-founders... assuming, of course, they made good (profitable) use of that $2.6 billion over the last 4 years.

Comment from WraithSama on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:19Z

Skype was a fantastic alternative to phone cards when I first moved out on my own 6 or so years ago and had broadband but no cell phone or land line.

However, cell phone plans are so economical and pragmatic these days that Skype simply stopped fitting my lifestyle years ago. It's gotta' be a pretty niche market, right? I'm guessing that's why eBay sold the company back.

Comment from Trai_Dep on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:19Z

@Trai_Dep: I realize that the article has this:

"The final $2.75 billion valuation is only slightly higher than the $2.6 billion that eBay originally acquired Skype for in 2005."

But the structuring of the two deals has to be different, and so it'd be interesting to see how it worked out for the founders on a cash-out/cash-in basis.

Comment from Trai_Dep on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:19Z

Does anyone have a rough estimate of how much the Skype founders netted after selling Skype 1.0 to eBay, then buying it back?

(Yay! Comments are back!!)

Comment from CompyPaq on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:19Z

@GitEmSteveDave_CanCommentz: The account was then flagged for fraud and the money disappeared into a null void.

Comment from GitEmSteveDave_CanCommentz on 2009-11-23

2009-11-23T22:31:19Z

Sadly, eBay demanded payment through payPal, and got stuck paying the fees to receive it.