14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has often been accused of not caring about its mobile users, and now all those who have struggled to stick with Windows phones have another reason to blast the company.
Skype has been killed off for old platforms, including here Windows Phone 8 and Windows Phone 8.1, with the latter currently the most used version of Microsoft’s mobile platform. In other words, Microsoft has retired Skype for the majority of its mobile users, who have until now been deprived of several other essential releases, including Windows 10 Mobile itself.
The eagerly-awaited release of Windows 10 Mobile was available for some 50 percent of Windows Phone devices, before Microsoft eventually decided to leave more phones behind by making the Creators Update compatible with only 13 different phone models.
The Skype overhaul
The Skype retirement, however, is part of Microsoft’s transformation of its VoIP platform into a fully-featured instant messaging solution. Skype is evolving with new infrastructure and features that are not supported by Windows Phone, so Microsoft has no other option than to kill off these clients completely.
In a message that was displayed to users in the last months, Microsoft explains that there’s no workaround to continue using Skype on these platforms, other than migrating to a device that can run the new client.
“We’ve noticed that you are, or previous were, using Skype on Windows Phone 8, Windows Phone 8.1, Messaging app for Windows 10 Mobile, Windows RT or a TV. We’re sorry to inform you that we will be permanently retiring these versions of Skype. As a result, after July 1, 2017, you will no longer be able to sign in to these versions of Skype,” Microsoft says.
“Recently started using Skype on another device? Great, you can ignore this email,” the company says, suggesting that other devices, like Android phones and iPhones, are better choices.
Skype has already received a major overhaul on these platforms, including a completely new UI and lots of new options, so moving to Android or iOS indeed seems to be a much better option right now.