It also has instant messaging , file transfer, debit -based calls to landline and mobile telephones over traditional telephone networks , and other features.
It is available on various desktop, mobile, and video game console platforms. Skype originally featured a hybrid peer-to-peer and clientβserver system. As of February , it was used by 36 million people each day. The name for the software is derived from "Sky peer-to-peer ", which was then abbreviated to "Skyper". However, some of the domain names associated with "Skyper" were already taken. In June , Skype entered an agreement with Polish web portal Onet.
Between and , Skype collaborated with PayPal to provide a money-send feature, enabling users to transfer funds via the Skype mobile app in the middle of a conversation.
In , Skype was declared the sixth most-downloaded mobile app of the decade, from to The acquisition was completed on 13 October Along with taking over the development of existing Skype desktop and mobile apps , it developed a dedicated client app for its then-newly released, touch-focused Windows 8 and Windows RT operating systems, which were made available from Windows Store when the then-new OS launched on 26 October The following year, it became the default messaging app for Windows 8.
In a month-long transition from 8 to 30 April , Microsoft discontinued two [ see talk ] of its own products in favor of Skype, including its Windows Live Messenger instant messaging service, although Messenger continued to be available in mainland China until October On 11 November , Microsoft announced that in , its Lync product would be replaced by Skype for Business , combining the features of Lync and the consumer Skype software.
