eBay buys Skype

Keywords: eBay, Skype

It’s official! eBay buys Skype.
Source: Skype Journal

Press Release:
"London, September 12, 2005 – eBay Inc. (Nasdaq: EBAY; www.ebay.com) has agreed to acquire Luxembourg-based Skype Technologies SA, the global Internet communications company, for approximately $2.6 billion in up-front cash and eBay stock, plus potential performance-based consideration. The acquisition will strengthen eBay’s global marketplace and payments platform, while opening several new lines of business and creating significant new monetization opportunities for the company. The deal also represents a major opportunity for Skype to advance its leadership in Internet voice communications and offer people worldwide new ways to communicate in a global online era. Skype, eBay and PayPal will create an unparalleled ecommerce and communications engine for buyers and sellers around the world."
Source: Skype

Events & Presentations:
eBay to Acquire Skype - eBay

News:
eBay - Topix.net
Skype - Google News

Analysis:
Skype, PayPal and eBay - loose wire
Niklas and Meg 4-ever - EuroTelcoblog
Ebay set to seal Skype deal for over $2.6bn - Rodrigo A. Sepъlveda Schulz
Why eBay Is Buying Skype - Business Week
The Simple Reason eBay bought Skype - Ross Mayfield
Business as Usual at Skype Estonia - Ross Mayfield

Analysts:
Skype - JupiterResearch Analyst Weblogs
Ebay - Aqute Market Research

Insight:
"If you take the elements of eBay, including the micro-payments capability of Paypal and, now, the IP-based communications capabilities of Skype, we may be seeing the formation of the next Reuters."
Source: Some thoughts on eBay’s Purchase of Skype - The Jeff Pulver Blog
Why eBay bought Skype - poductivity
Ebay buys Skype: the deal of the decade? - The Mobile Technology Weblog
A different spin on eBay-Skype - Mark Sigal

Interviews:
The Secret to Skype's Success? - AO
Man on the Skype Interviews: What does the eBay-Skype deal mean to you? - Skype Journal

Discuss:
eBay To Buy Skype For $2.6 Billion - Slashdot
eBay to buy telephony group Skype - WebmasterWorld

Search:
Skype - Technorati
Skype - IceRocket

Finance:
EBAY - The Internet Stock Blog

Photos:
Skype - Flickr

Audio:
EBay Acquires Skype for $4.1billion - EarningsCast
EarningsCast-eBay-2005-Q2-EBAY

Questions:
"So, here's the question--Will Google buy eBay? Or Amazon?
I'd like to bet that big war chest goes for platform tools, not media."
Source: Susan Mernit

See also:
Search Wars: Google Talk - The World 2 Come
The Future of Media - 2 - The World 2 Come

Update:
eBay + Paypal + Skype + Shopping.com + Kijiji = ?

Update 2:
Skype's Product Development Roadmap Through February 2006 - Skype Journal