eBay win Skype auction
It looks like eBay is set to dig deep and buy Skype for a deal worth an initial $2.6bn. If the purchase proves successful, the total amount of the takeover could rise to over $4.1bn.
The Skype people must be rubbing their hands with glee at this announcement. The company is barely out of start-up phase, having only been around for less than 3 years, and currently only has a modest turnover of between $30m and $50m. I’m not sure how eBay came to this valuation but it seems way off to me, but then I’m not a visionary VC...
Also, I wonder what are the odds on another rival company gazumping the deal with a bid of $2,600,000,000.50... (sorry, couldn’t resist!)
Posted 6 years, 8 months ago
Surely the Ebay valuation means they figure they can start charging for the basic (free) Skype service? Provided it’s significantly cheaper than regular phone calls, people will still use it. I hope I’m proven wrong, anyway. I’ve only just started using it this last week, but I’m blown away by it.
Mal · www · 6 years, 8 months ago
I think it would be a mistake to start charging for the service - most people would probably defect to one of the other VoIP service providers. I suspect it’s more likely that they’ll charge for it’s use in eBay communications.
Most people seem to suspect that buyers and sellers will be encouraged to talk and IM each other using Skype. Though having said that, why not just license the technology rather than shell out a couple of billion dollars?
Phil · www · 6 years, 8 months ago