en-us http://backend.userland.com/rss Your Friends @ Myvesta.org.uk (stever@myvesta.org) myvestaukblog_archive.html stever@myvesta.org 112627125993456535 Word on the street has it that eBay wants to buy Skype, the internet telephony company. Apparently the price under discussion is £1.6 billion. I wonder what kind of feedback rating you get when you purchase an item of that size.

Maybe eBay should just list Skype for sale on its site? Imagine the final value fee on a £1.6 billion.

So what is this Skype company and why is it such a hot commodity? Skype has emerged as a major player in the voice-over-internet protocol (VoIP) or internet telephony market. They currently offer their service for free and users can place calls all over the world. About 50 million people are registered to use their service.

Google and Microsoft both want into this market because they see the huge potential. Companies like Vonage and Packet 8 have already demonstrated the public acceptance for VoIP.

I wonder, if eBay successfully purchases Skype, will you have to bid to make a call?