SKYPE STOCK FREE

The auction site would likely collect fees from sellers on a 'pay per call' basis, wherein sellers would pay each time a customer called them via Skype, or through a flat amount paid in exchange for a link to the merchant's Skype contact information on his product's page, said eBay spokesman Hani Durzy. When the deal is complete, eBay hopes to integrate the service with its e-commerce operations, allowing buyers and sellers to communicate through VoIP. 'Communication is at the heart of community and e-commerce, making Skype a natural fit for eBay,' Whitman said.

There is currently about a 1 percent overlap among Skype and eBay users, according to the eBay investor presentation.ĮBay CEO Meg Whitman told investors in a conference call that she hoped a power trio of eBay, Paypal and Skype would deliver an 'unparalleled e-commerce and communications engine' by 'removing a key point of friction between buyers and sellers.' The fast-growing company said it has 54 million subscribers and adds 150,000 users each day. Skype generates nearly half of its revenue base in Europe, about a quarter in Asia, and about an eighth in North America. Skype has not yet posted a profit, an executive told Reuters. The company expects revenue of $60 million this year and more than $200 million in 2006, a Skype representative confirmed Monday. It is considered the market leader in nearly all of the 225 countries and independent territories where it does business, according to a company press release.

SKYPE STOCK FREE

Luxembourg-based Skype, founded in 2002 by Scandinavian entrepreneurs, offers free computer-to-computer voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calls and low-cost connectivity between computer and landline or mobile phones. It more recently picked up for $620 million in cash. In another big-time merger, eBay acquired online payments company PayPal in 2002 for about $1.5 billion. The move, expected to be complete by the end of the fourth quarter, marks the biggest acquisition in eBay's 10-year history. It has agreed to hand over up to an extra $1.5 billion, for a total payout of more than $4 billion, if Skype meets certain financial targets by 2008, according to a presentation to investors on Monday morning. EBay plans to buy Net telephone provider Skype in a move aimed at boosting its sales volumes and supplying seamless voice communications to its consumers.Ĭompany executives said Monday that eBay plans to pay $1.3 billion in cash and $1.3 billion in stock to the global communications company.

Skype stock