Feb 28 (Reuters) - Skype will ring for the last time

this May as owner Microsoft ( MSFT ) retires the two-decade-old internet

calling service that redefined how people connect across

borders.

Shutting down Skype will help Microsoft ( MSFT ) focus on

its homegrown Teams service by simplifying its communication

offerings, the software giant said on Friday.

Founded in 2003, Skype's cheap audio and video calls quickly

disrupted the landline industry in the early 2000s and made the

company a household name boasting hundreds of millions of users

at its peak. But the platform has struggled to keep up with

easier-to-use and more reliable rivals such as Zoom and

Salesforce's Slack in recent years.

The decline was partly because Skype's underlying technology

was not suited for the smartphone era.

When the pandemic and work-from-home fueled the need for

online business calls, Microsoft ( MSFT ) batted for Teams by

aggressively integrating it with other Office apps to tap

corporate users - once a major base for Skype.

To ease the transition from the platform, its users will be

able to log into Teams for free on any supported device using

their existing credentials, with chats and contacts migrating

automatically.

With that, Skype will become the latest in a series of

high-flying bets that Microsoft ( MSFT ) has mishandled, such as the

Internet Explorer web browser and its Windows Phone. Other big

tech firms have also struggled with online communication tools,

with Google making several attempts through apps including

Hangouts and Duo.

When Microsoft ( MSFT ) bought Skype in 2011 for $8.5 billion after

outbidding Google and Facebook - its largest deal at the time -

the service had about 150 million monthly users; by 2020, that

number had fallen to roughly 23 million, despite a brief

resurgence during the pandemic.

Microsoft ( MSFT ) said on Friday "Skype has been an integral part of

shaping modern communications".

"We are honored to have been part of the journey."