MSN to merge with Skype, apparently!

[Razor Leaf]

So Msn and Skype are seemingly going to be merged. Discuss!

Personally, I hate this. I really don't like Skype's interface - although I do use it anyway for offline friends - and I have a load of Msn contacts who don't use Skype at all. On the non-selfish side of things though I guess it... sort of makes sense to merge them although it's weird that they'd do it when normal WLM is plastered with money-making adverts and, iirc, a new WLM version was just released. Although I could be wrong at that last part since I don't use WLM because I dislike it even more than Skype. d:

edit: I could have misunderstood, looking back. It kinda seems like Msn contacts are simply available to talk to on Skype but WLM is staying put as an alternative? If that's the case then it makes much more sense but... could be wrong here.

[Shining Raichu]

I'm very upset by this development I love my MSN. This is why people switch to Apple, Microsoft make bad choices that pay no mind to nostalgia!

[Patchisou Yutohru]

Makes sense. Skype was bought by Microsoft, and Microsoft's own client for instant messaging isn't as popular as it once was. Skype is continuing to increase in user base. Most of the world doesn't use MSN anymore. I think it's a smart business move, but it'll be pretty difficult for the people who are really gung-ho with MSN. As for me, it'll give me more of an incentive to use Skype. And since I find Skype to be a lot more easier when it comes to calls and video chats (I guess that's the case for everyone, given that's what Skype was predominantly made for), it means it's a lot easier to do that with my internet friends now! Coolio!

[Leaf Storm]

^Pretty much that. Since Skype was bought by microsoft, I had a feeling they would merge someday. So, the news doesn't surprise me. I personally haven't been using msn a lot lately and rely more on skype, so I'm very interested to see how this merging goes.

[Urugamosu]

No way! D:

I'm an MSN guy, and I usually prefer it that way. Seeing that microsoft (Yet again) is making a bad decision at something probably thousands of people will hate.
Microsoft, let the people choose!

[Aeon]

Welp, to me the inevitable is happening. Windows 8's Skype app has you link your MSN account so you can merge the two contact lists, as well as the newer versions of Skype. I'm fine with it, but mainly because Skype has been my primary IM for the past 4 years.

[Hybrid Trainer]

I'm not really that surprised to be honest. I noticed that MSN hit its peek a few years ago and has just been going down hill ever since while Skype has been sky rocketing in popularity because of its video call features and such.
To be honest the only reason I've stuck with MSN as my primary IM is because of all the different applications I could use to access it, with skype I could only really use the official skype app and maybe one or two others if I'm lucky to find a half decent one. With this change over though and skype becoming the default IM for Microsoft I hope some more apps can let me use skype. If I can get that then I'll be happy with the switch over/merging.

[LilJz1234]

I don't really mind tho.. but if the interface changes way too much. It'll be a problem for me lol. One of my pet peeves are drastic interface changes.

[synerjee]

Uhh..I don't think I would like this.... If MSN got integrated into Skype, all the contacts might possibly get transferred over as well. My MSN account has lots and lots of stalkers and unknown people (and is possibly hacked, so all the more worse). I wouldn't want stalkers to be in my contact list! No way.

[Sydian]

I'm not happy. Not everyone wants or uses Skype, and I don't like having the WORLD added to my Skype, whereas I usually just add whoever on MSN. And MSN is just easier to get on cause it's for talking. Skype is when you get on and chat with someone...like really chat. Get out the cams and mics u kno. That's what I only use it for anyway. So yeah, I'm very upset with this. Why not just keep things simple? Oh well, they killed MSN earlier in the year when they forced that upgrade. But still...

lets go back to aim guyz

[SamuJake]

I like the idea. I use Skype a fair bit when I want to speak to friends that I haven't seen for a bit. I used to love using MSN back in 2005-2009 but after that, I just didn't see the point, everyone was using Facebook. I like the idea of combining the two. I want to see what it would look like.

[Zet]

Originally Posted by Aeon

Welp, to me the inevitable is happening. Windows 8's Skype app has you link your MSN account so you can merge the two contact lists, as well as the newer versions of Skype. I'm fine with it, but mainly because Skype has been my primary IM for the past 4 years.

No fair, I totally wanted to post that feature ;o;


But at least I can say it's metro app only for now. I didn't see any of my msn contacts on the desktop version.

Originally Posted by Shining Raichu

I'm very upset by this development :( I love my MSN. This is why people switch to Apple, Microsoft make bad choices that pay no mind to nostalgia!

And buying a $2000 low-end machine, is totally a smart thing to do in retaliation :P


Also Apple doesn't care in the slightest for nostalgia. They hate legacy, and kill it off any chance they can. It's why a lot of the newer versions of their software don't support older OSX versions.

[♪Twiggy♪]

You know what? I'm fine with this. People tend to resist change - then they'll get used to it. How many times have we seen this? No, MSN ending won't make people switch to Apple or anything, since, y'know, the latter is cross-platform, though it does work very well with Windows-powered devices.

I also welcome being able to sign in using my Outlook.com account.

(Speaking of messy contacts, it's not too late to do some spring cleaning now. I don't bother - I just link it with my Facebook account and then manually duplicate them to my main account.)

[Shiny Celebi]

Not sure how I feel about this. I dont use MSN only Skype, so I guess I dont really care all that much, I'll continue to use Skype normally on my Mac. I guess it's cool that all your contacts will be merged though, pretty handy.

[Ven Bloodia]

I'm fine with it personally just as long as I don't hear that constant boop sound every 2 seconds or so that Skype makes whenever someone posts on a chat.

[Abnegation]

Given that there hasn't been anything official announced, I don't really see why they would do this. Skype and Windows Live Messwnger are two different kinds of programs. If Microsoft take wlm off the market they'll be no longer providing an instant messaging program. They will be giving Yahoo the chair.

Skype is a speaking service, like Viber. While it provides services seen in wlm it doesn't have a instant messaging interface. The way it looks now is a lot more geared towards its purpose and not towards instant messaging. If te two program's were merged it would be an overly bloated and confusing program. People who instant message look for straight forward, clean cut messaging, without the over complication of numourous extras to slow down the process.

In saying that, I wouldn't be surprised if this did happen or at the very least, they became a bit more linked. But if Microsoft look at this from a service point of view and not a way to limit their responsibility, they'll notice that you can't merge two distinctive concepts.

WLM needs a facelift, but most likely Microsoft will be linking the two programs so that they get more people using both instead of one or the other. But merge these and they risk losing users to other services who are loyal to the individual programs.

[Cirrus]

Speaking from my personal experiences with Skype and Windows Live, I would actually like this change quite a bit. I use Skype as an instant messaging tool more than I use it as a voice communication tool, and I like Skype's neatness and general presentation a lot more than MSN. The only thing that's mildly lacking is perhaps the ability to see your own avatar in a 1-on-1 conversation, but the ease of quotation and cross-reference as well as the program's 1-window-has-everything interface has essentially made me pretty much abandon MSN altogether (and ask my friends to sign up for Skype instead).

As for Skype's new message notification sound ... MSN's is much more annoying and the pop-up chat window is many times more obtrusive. Though, you can turn it off in either case.

[TRIFORCE89]

I don't like Skype's interface. And I don't want to deal with the hassle of potential contact list merging

[LividZephyr]

I use Trillian to merge AIM and MSN and I don't really use Skype. Some of us LIKE text-based chatting, and I hope that is always an option.

And I'd rather die than buy anything from Apple so I might have to live with this. Depending on how they do it...

[QuilavaKing]

As long as it doesn't make skype any worse, I don't care. MSN is stupid, and I don't understand why people like it better. lol

[Frostweaver]

Well I understand that skype has test based messaging too, but I find it to be a resource-hog for a text based IM client. The biggest advantage of MSN over all other IM client is just... custom emoticons. I love my onions *points at his avatar in PC* and I use them all the time in my IMs. To be honest, so far I don't know any other IM that allows custom emoticons but MSN and that's why I use MSN.

I'm still looking over what IMs allow custom emoticons, and so far, it's a fruitless search =/

[Captain Fabio]

I am still sad about this, as I use MSN and Skype just isn't the same to use as a IM client.

If anyone finds something that we can use instead of having Skype as the soul client, I would be very interested to hear about it.

[Catalyst.]

I don't like this at all. Not only is the MSN interface way better than the Skype one (imo), but I have an awful internet connection that can't even handle PC on some of the beefier themes, never mind video calling.

Originally Posted by Captain Fabio

I am still sad about this, as I use MSN and Skype just isn't the same to use as a IM client.

If anyone finds something that we can use instead of having Skype as the soul client, I would be very interested to hear about it.

We could all flee to Yahoo! Messenger or AIM. If you mean use MSN without Skype, you could try something like Pidgin, though idk how those will function after this.

[Abnegation]

I just seen this today, so I took a screenshot. I'm pretty sure this all just means that the two programs are becoming more compatible with one another, as opposed to merging.

Spoiler:

[IceGod64]

My only problem with this is Skype's current UI is very bad. I wish they'd go back to an older one. Skype 4.2 had problems, but it was way better than modern skype.