![]() ![]() ![]() More information begets more trust, which then leads to more completed transactions, goes the theory. The original idea behind this ill-fated acquisition was that adding a leader in PC-based voice calls to online auctions would boost communication between curious buyers and nervous sellers, ultimately adding value to the company's core operations. In other words, there's not much going on here. There went the creative force behind Skype, and the service itself looks eerily similar to the circa-2005 version. Skype founders Janus Friis and Niklas Zennström have moved on to video-streaming pastures in Joost. The acquisition ostensibly cost $2.6 billion back in 2005, but certain performance targets were not met, and the final tab ended up being $1.1 billion or thereabouts. That would be one way of reclaiming some of the capital-cash, intellectual, and street cred-that eBay has squandered on Skype so far. If not, we'll reassess it," and possibly sell the unit. Expanding on those comments to a Financial Times reporter, Donahoe explained that "If the synergies are strong, we'll keep in our portfolio. ![]() The next stepĢ008 will be a year of "testing synergies" between the online voice and video communications service and other eBay operations such as auctions and PayPal payments. Freshly-anointed eBay CEO John Donahoe, answering questions on the company's earnings call last Thursday, dropped hints that it's time for Skype to show some value or else go away.
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