It's me for what I believe

Skype is a very popular VOIP service which also boosts the largest registered user base in the world, even bigger than Facebook. The latest data suggestes some mindblowing figures about this popular service. Skype is not just popular on desktop but is by far the largest mobile VOIP provider too. Skype has over 50 million active users on iPhones alone. It is very popular on android and its wp7 version is eagerly waited. On desktop it clocked over 200 billion minutes of calling last year. Has over 30 million users using it at any given time. These numbers are impressive and speaks a lot about the companies online power and clientage. Its also very popular among business users and is regarded as the best VOIP solution provider in the world. So Microsoft forked out over $8 billions for the company. The purchase at first seems way over proced but a closer look at the position skyoe enjoyes and microsoft suffers and you have a clear picture as to why Microsoft was so desperate for the company.
Skype gives microsoft instant access to a userbase that is far larger than google managed in 10 years. Add to that the facebook links that microsoft has and the hotmail and live service users and we have Microsoft suddenly sitting at the top of the pile. Lets look at some possible scenarios microsoft can use skype to its own advantage ( They done have anyone watching over them now):

1. Microsoft integrates Skype into its products. Windows, Xbox, Windows live, Lync, Windows Phone and even in Surface. This can be a  huge game changer for Microsoft if it can actually blend all these services together to its own advantage. Microsoft can do this and noone can stop them since google lives the same way. Windows Phone will actually be the hugest benificery and Skype can be Microsoftes online mobile network. Imagine a phone that checks if the person you are calling is on skype and calls him on skype instead of normal mobile call. Or, you can check if the person is available for call by checking his online status. Microsoft in a more aggresive way use skype as a alternate to mobile phone carrier. Use the phone sim free in a business world where most of the employees are using skype. Potentials are limitless for microsoft if it somehow manges to get into some sort of arrangement with the carriers all over the world. Tough but considering its microsoft, not impossible.

2.  Integrate it with facebook and in return get a bigger pie of facebook. Well this kills two birds with one shot. If they can convince the bad boy of the internet to give away 20% of facebook and get full skype integration into facebook, its a “kill shot” against google. Over night we have microsoft the “king of internet” with more than 1 billion users, the hugest online ad-base we have ever seen and a business unit that is powerful enough to take away google’s “bread and butter”. Microsoft can further improve the position if they can get twitter too. The company will cost another 3-4 billion but will essentially suffocate googles future cash flow, but than such a move could backfire as online community doesnot actually like the idea of “microsoft being the king with google running for cover”.

3. Create a global virtual mobile network buying Nokia or HTC and launching phones which use skype to make calls over the data network which can be wi-fi or data plans of carriers. Get into arrangements with network providers with a revenue sharing deals suiting each country. This can create a whole new “microsoft” alltogether.

Lastly, all these ideas may seem far fetched but considering microsoft is not using its position to its own advantage, I dont see any hurdle except for the fact, too many companies will suffer from such an integration and hence, enemy of my enemy is my friend can come to play helping google or network providers more than actually helping microsoft. At this moment, with mobile phones becoming more popular and powerfull, microsoft cannot alienate the network providers or get into another legal battle, I doubt they will do any such thing but one thins is sure, when BILL GATES supports and encourages something for Microsoft, it is best for the company.

Do you people think microsoft can do this? Are you excited about skype becoming more part of windows enviornment and our lives? Don’t you guys think, Microsoft deserves a chance to take some shots at google if given a fair chance? Are you too of the view that Microsoft should be allowed to do things that helps them rather than there competitor, they worked hard to reach the position of dominance so they have every tight to enjoy it (something US does so frequently)?