Microsoft-Skype Deal Poised To Win EU Approval

Pigskin-Referee wrote in with a story about the EU's approval of Microsoft acquiring Skype. The article reads: "Microsoft's proposed $8.5 billion acquisition of Skype has earned the approval of the European Union, the Financial Times reported Thursday. The European Commissioner for Competition, Joaquin Almunia, is expected to rule that the acquisition won't harm competition or turn Skype into a Microsoft-exclusive platform. The decision ignores accusations that Microsoft is simply bundling services on Windows to drown out smaller competitors, as argued by Italian Skype rival Messagenet last week. Messagenet also urged the Commission to require Microsoft to unbundle Skype from its Windows Office Suite. The FT reports that Microsoft 'promised' the Commission it would keep Skype interoperable and supported on rival operating systems."

Comments

Unbundle "Skype"

[Anonymous Cowar]

You don't think that microsoft is actually going to use the skype brand in office? No! They already have an IM/voice suite previously known as office communicator, now Lync. What microsoft is going to do is continue to produce Skype skinned IM clients for the masses (powered by Lync), while gutting the IP and integrating skype's P2P voice pathing (and other goodness) in its own products.

Re:Unbundle "Skype"

[Gwala]

So.... no different than before Microsoft bought it then.

Re:Unbundle "Skype"

[rtfa-troll]

Do you have a SIP client that actually works. I mean, other than in a perfectly groomed office environment with fast LAN and correctly allocated IP addresses all the way through to the SIP gateway? I mean, works as in "provides fully encrypted end to end voice with no more configuration than giving a username and password". Works as in "installs for free and almost instantly on Most Linux distros and has an interconnecting client which also works on Windows and Mac". Works as in "you can seamlessly switch on video and/or conference calling during the middle of a call". Works as in "it's very difficult for some stupid ignorant IT guy to turn off the encryption".

I have never actually seen such a thing. If someone could just provide it they would be able to take over from Skype almost instantly.

If you could make this do automated phone number verification and bypass then it would be a great success. Let people register phone number / name pairs; call them back and have them confirm a code (as Google apps does) and then when someone calls their phone number from that client route it directly to them over SIP.

Re:I want my OS with as much stuff bundled in it

[cluelessTypeOfGuy]

And you can do it if you wanted. You can do the same thing in N. America. With a car, you have any choice you like. You can build it from scratch (and pay for it) or buy one ready to go.
With software, due to laws, that choice can be taken from you, and Microsoft and likes used that option extensively.

Skype relaunched as Windows Bing Voice

[David Gerard]

BOLGIAS 8 AND 9, Seattle, Tuesday (NTN) — Microsoft remains on the bleeding edge of innovation with its completely new-from-the-ground-up Windows Bing Voice Internet phone platform, formerly known as Skype.

Windows Bing Voice was developed entirely in-house at an acquisition cost of only $8.5 billion. “Our developer teams know the meaning of confidentiality,” said Steve Ballmer. “Heck, even they didn’t know it was Skype until today. That’s how, uh, stealth we are.”

The new Windows Bing Voice client will be included with Windows Phone 7, Office 365, Kin and Zune. “Microsoft will continue to invest in and support Skype clients on non-Microsoft platforms! On a case by case time and availability basis, of course. We’ll give our Mac Business Unit developer details for Windows Bing Voice 2011 Ultimate Edition by 2013, for sure.”

Service is expected to remain “at 100%” as the server infrastructure is moved from Linux to Windows, though Microsoft has not specified what that will be 100% of. The peer-to-peer functionality of Skype will also be harnessed to distribute Windows updates and Windows Genuine Advantage serial number blacklists.

Google said that the Google Voice servers were “holding up well” under the influx of new users.