It looks like Skype is going to wind up with a new owner. Internet auction company eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) owns Skype now but is said to be selling the online telephony provider to private investors.
Andreessen Horowitz, a recently formed venture capital fund with Netscape co-founder Marc Andreessen at the helm, is said to be a likely participant in a transaction. Index Ventures of London and Silver Lake Partners are also rumored to be involved.
The value of the deal hasn't been disclosed yet, and eBay spokesman Alan Marks isn't talking. Back in May, John Donahoe, eBay's CEO, said that $2 billion would be a low price for Skype. Yet, there is some distance between executive chest-thumping and the amount investors may be willing to pay.
Once someone starts talking, we'll be able to get a sense of who's winning – which could conceivably be everyone as eBay refocuses its business and Skype investors can tap unrealized potential in the company.
Of course, there is always the possibility that the move won't be shrouded in rainbows and unicorns.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-01-2009 @ 9:09AM
inteller said...
time for Microsoft to loosen the purse strings....this would be a violent coup for them to grab skype voice and insert it into WLM and vice versa insert WLM into current skype clients.