Author: Ted Roche
Posted: 2011-05-10 at 19:12:35
On Tue, May 10, 2011 at 6:37 PM, Paul McNett <p@ulmcnett.com> wrote:
>
> A very good thing, for Skype Management and top shareholders that get the -hello-
> $8.5 Billion.
>
Yeah, the investors who bought it from eBay were mocked. They did a
nice job of squaring away some outstanding legal issues and brought in
some good management. For their reward, they walk away with a tidy
sum.
I think MS overpaid badly, but we'll see...
> Microsoft's track record with online acquisitions sucks, and so I have a hunch a
> chunk of Skype's user base will go elsewhere pretty much immediately, at least the
> Mac and Linux base, which leaves Microsoft with the executives and grandmas, not the
> in-tech young crowd.
>
> It is probably good for the telecommunications industry: now something better than
> Skype will just have to come around and take control, because we can't leave this to
> Microsoft.
There have been some pretty good developments in the VOIP space; more
consumer-friendly tools like Obihai
(http://www.obihai.com/what-is.html) look like an
Aunt-Tilly-acceptable solution. I like off-loading telephony hardware
from the computer platform, while providing computer and remote access
to the telephony capabilities.
> Unless they were to open-source it, and commit to the Mac, Linux, IOS, Android, etc.
> platforms...
There was an really interesting article on how the Skype peer-to-peer
model clashes with the Google cloud model:
http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2011/05/why-google-does-not-own-skype/
There are lots of alternatives, free and not:
http://gigaom.com/collaboration/9-great-alternatives-to-skype-for-voip-and-video-chat/
> ...what do you think? Personally I think Microsoft is going to crash Skype into the
> ocean, whether they intend to or not. At least with Ballmer at the helm.
While past history is no indication of future performance, Microsoft
and other corporate behemoths can bat .500 and not worry about the
fallout: invest in a lot of stuff and if more of it doubles than falls
apart, they make a profit. Microsoft can have a lot of mediocre
results that don't show a direct bottom line profit, they can acquire
Sybase SQL Server, FoxPro, Danger HipTop (now, there was a disaster!),
Great Plains, HotMaiL, and keep going. And MS diversified! There's a
lot of money in distant products. So, MS will plug along for a long
time, but their products are likely ground under the steamroller.
--
Ted Roche
Ted Roche & Associates, LLC
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