Top Items:
skype.com:
eBay to Acquire Skype — London, September 12, 2005 - eBay Inc. (Nasdaq: EBAY; www.ebay.com) has agreed to acquire Luxembourg-based Skype Technologies SA, the global Internet communications company, for approximately $2.6 billion in up-front cash and eBay stock, plus potential performance-based consideration.
Discussion:
Mark Evans, PaidContent.org, Software Only, Techdirt, Rodrigo A. Sepúlveda Schulz and The Social Software Weblog
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MarketWatch:
Ebay set to seal Skype deal for over $2.6bn — By Richard Waters in San Francisco and James Politi in New York — Ebay was in the final stages late on Sunday night of sealing an agreement to buy Skype, the fast-growing provider of voice calls over the internet, for more than $2.6bn, according to a person close to the situation.
Rob Hof / TechBeat:
Here Comes the eBay Announcement... Just got a notice from eBay of an "investor conference call" at 5 a.m. Pacific time, on an announcement to be made two hours earlier. Very unusual practice for eBay. I don't know for sure, but who wouldn't guess that eBay's buying Skype after all?
Luis F. Escalante / news.designtechnica.com:
eBay Buys Skype for $4.1 Billion — eBay's creates one-click trust between buyers and sellers. — According to a BusinessWeek article, eBay will be holding an "investors conference call" at 5am PST for an announcement to be made 2 hours before. Since the eBay, Skype talks began early last week …
sandvine.com:
Skype Leads the VoIP Pack — Waterloo, Ontario; August 9, 2005 - New research from intelligent broadband network equipment maker, Sandvine reveals that Skype is leading the VoIP provider pack in North America. — 2004 was termed the 'year of VoIP rollouts' and the first half of 2005 has seen explosive consumer adoption.
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Olga Kharif / TechBeat:
VoIP Hype: Could It Lead to a Bust? — Every week, it seems Web-calling provider Skype is said to be for sale for a greater amount. In the past month, the company's alleged price tag has jumped from $2 billion to $5 billion. My colleague Rob Hof had blogged recently on how ridiculously high …
Chris Gaither / Los Angeles Times:
Chat From the War Zone — With the hiring of blogger-journalist Kevin Sites, Yahoo is set to compete with TV news. — Yahoo Inc. has been talking like a major media company. Today it will start acting like one. — Ten months after Lloyd Braun, former chairman of the ABC television network …
Joanna Glasner / Wired News:
Less Plaque, More Action Films — Leaning back in the dentist's chair with a drill whirring in the background represents, for most people, one of life's more agitating experiences. — For patients of Dr. Bruce Bothwell, however, such moments simply provide a chance to watch the opening credits.
Ars Technica:
iPod nano — System requirements: Macintosh computer running Mac OS X 10.3.4 or later, USB port; Windows PC running Windows 2000 SP4 or Windows XP SP2, USB port — Price: US$199 (2GB), US$249 (shop for the iPod nano) — As we all know, Apple's iPod has dominated the digital music player scene since …