Microsoft is on the verge of a deal to buy Skype, in a multi-billion-dollar acquisition that would be its biggest ever, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.
The software company would reportedly pay between $7-8 billion for the internet telephone company, the report said.
The price appears to be part of a bidding war — Skype has reportedly also been in talks with Google and Facebook.
The deal, which the Journal report said could be announced as early as Tuesday, would boost Microsoft’s ailing smartphone business.
Skype account holders can make free telephone and video calls using the internet. The company derives its income from calls to and from landlines. It has more than 550 million registered users worldwide.
The deal, which would include Skype’s debt, would be worth an overall $8.5 billion, according to the Journal. It would mark a major jump on the previous price.
In 2005, the online auctioneer eBay acquired Skype from its developers for 2.6 billion dollars. It sold the company for 1.9 billion four years later, after it became apparent that the internet telephone company was not suited to the online trading platform.
The software company would reportedly pay between $7-8 billion for the internet telephone company, the report said.
The price appears to be part of a bidding war — Skype has reportedly also been in talks with Google and Facebook.
The deal, which the Journal report said could be announced as early as Tuesday, would boost Microsoft’s ailing smartphone business.
Skype account holders can make free telephone and video calls using the internet. The company derives its income from calls to and from landlines. It has more than 550 million registered users worldwide.
The deal, which would include Skype’s debt, would be worth an overall $8.5 billion, according to the Journal. It would mark a major jump on the previous price.
In 2005, the online auctioneer eBay acquired Skype from its developers for 2.6 billion dollars. It sold the company for 1.9 billion four years later, after it became apparent that the internet telephone company was not suited to the online trading platform.
