Microsoft has been working on the backend of Skype to move its entire platform from P2P services to a cloud-based operation. As of earlier this year, this transition is complete and now the company is ready to move away from older applications.

If you are using Skype on Windows Phone 8 or 8.1, Windows RT, the messaging app for Windows 10 Mobile, or on a TV, these apps will stop working on July 1, 2017. The company has started notifying users on these platforms that these applications will cease to function after this date.

You can see the notice above, thanks to the tip from @MichaelMartinez, that clearly outlines this change; the link in the message takes you to this landing page.

This announcement shouldn’t come as a huge surprise as the company announced last year that they would eventually be ending support for these platforms. What they did not do at that time was provide the specific date that they would sunset these products.

If you are using these apps, after July 1, 2017 you are left with few options. If you can access a web browser, you can use Skype on the web but as for native apps, you’ll need a new piece of hardware to be able to access the platform.

And given how much Microsoft values monthly active users of its software, seeing as they are ending support for these platforms tells us that the user base is incredibly small on these platforms.

Tagged with Skype