Nov 23, 2010 21:29 GMT  ·  By

Skype is by far the most popular service when it comes to providing voice communication and multimedia sessions over the Internet. The company behind Skype has recently announced that they have reached a new milestone in their development: 25 million online users, simultaneously. Initially, Skype started as a desktop application that would function as a VoIP client (Voice over Internet Protocol) and users only needed to create a personalized username.

Since 2003, when it was officially launched all over the world, Skype has released numerous improvements to their Windows edition, while also developing a Macintosh version in 2006 and a Linux one in 2008.

By constantly adding new features (such as integration with the largest social network currently available, Facebook) and enhancing the existing ones, Skype has managed to increase its userbase at a steady pace, and releasing several mobile apps has added even more value to its 'appeal'.

At the moment, Skype offers support for Android and Symbian handsets, and it also runs smoothly on any iPhone or Nokia N900 device.

In the United States, the software utility has been made available on more than 20 Verizon Wireless devices, such as various prepaid smartphones.

Considering the great amount of effort and dedication Skype team always put into developing and supporting the service, it almost makes sense that the VoIP client recorded no less than 25 million concurrent users.

In order to celebrate this event, a post on their blog reads: “Our software is designed to handle large numbers of concurrent users, with wideband audio and group video calls all flowing smoothly around the world – from mothers in Montevideo to their sons in San Francisco, and from contractors in Canberra to their suppliers in Seoul.”

Furthermore, it seems that during the first half of 2010, about 40 percent of the total number of Skype-to-Skype minutes were video ones, proving that its video feature is the most appealing.

Needless to say, the company does not plan to stop here, since their goal is ‘to build communications products which billions of people embrace every day,’ and this requires even more effort and commitment on the part of the developers - all to ensure users enjoy a stable method of easily getting in touch with friends and family.