Ebay buys Skype

**koala** · 09-19-2005, 03:39 AM

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4237338.stm
E-Bay has just bought Skype for $2.6billion, so customers can now speak directly to vendors about their purchases instead of emailing.

Wouldn't it be cool if TSF used Skype? It would be so much quicker to solve problems if we could talk to each other in realtime. The downside would be that it would feel like going to work in a helpdesk call center, which can be quite stressful. But Offline and Rants & Raves would be very lively... and almost impossible to moderate!

bry623 · 09-19-2005, 08:25 AM

That would be cool. We have an 800 # here at work. I have given it out on rare ocassion. Could you imagine what I could get into with some of the anti-bush people?

**uripyores** · 09-19-2005, 09:54 AM

I was gonna get Skype but I've changed me mind now that ebay is involved.
If they allow you to talk to the the buyer/seller I wonder how much more cash they will want.
I hate ebay. [still go there tho

]

elf · 09-19-2005, 10:04 AM

Hey danrak...why didn't you buy skype before ebay did? surely you can afford 2.6billion...

**DumberDrummer** · 09-19-2005, 12:30 PM

you know, ebay didn't have to buy it... buyers and sellers could have used skype to talk even before this.

Even better and easier, they could have just partnered with AIM or something so that people could chat that way.

Seems like overkill to me just for purchaser/seller conversations.

I bet they have an ulterior motive.

**koala** · 09-19-2005, 02:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DumberDrummer

I bet they have an ulterior motive.

It looks like the future is in merging methods of communication. With Google and Microsoft buying into telecoms, and now Ebay, it's only a matter of time before phones, IMs, webcams etc are merged into a device implanted in our heads, and our lives become controlled by corporations and advertisers.

**Jason** · 09-19-2005, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by koala

The downside would be that it would feel like going to work in a helpdesk call center,

Helpdesk?!

Thats it I'm out of here. Never again.

**Fox** · 09-19-2005, 09:04 PM

I think an important part of this site is not just the help we provide to individual users, but the help that in turn is provided to people simply referencing it through the archives. With direct voice contact, we'd lose this, and it wouldn't be as effective. Then again, this would be helpful with some problems.

**Jason** · 09-19-2005, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fox

I think an important part of this site is not just the help we provide to individual users, but the help that in turn is provided to people simply referencing it through the archives. With direct voice contact, we'd lose this, and it wouldn't be as effective. Then again, this would be helpful with some problems.

This is true. I do get a few e-mails now and again of people thanking for the information found in previous posts.

**Jason** · 09-19-2005, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by elf

Hey danrak...why didn't you buy skype before ebay did? surely you can afford 2.6billion...

Well I was going to buy this and use the rest of the cash to bail myself out of jail and all the speeding fines I would get.

Chevy · 09-21-2005, 10:28 PM

Amazing automobile ... 0-150 in 12.8 seconds!

<insert>Homer Simpson drool sequence</insert>

**40sondacurb** · 09-21-2005, 11:31 PM

how are you going to get over the old people driving a car without wings? Unless that thing has that turbo booster from knight car

http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/~ac...es/Season1.mp3

09-19-2005, 03:39 AM	#1 (permalink)
koala Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: UK Posts: 12,360 OS: XP/7/Ubuntu My System	Ebay buys Skype http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4237338.stm E-Bay has just bought Skype for $2.6billion, so customers can now speak directly to vendors about their purchases instead of emailing. Wouldn't it be cool if TSF used Skype? It would be so much quicker to solve problems if we could talk to each other in realtime. The downside would be that it would feel like going to work in a helpdesk call center, which can be quite stressful. But Offline and Rants & Raves would be very lively... and almost impossible to moderate! __________________ New members: Subscribe to your thread (Thread Tools) to receive an instant email notification when you get a reply. TSF Folding@Home Team 85015 - details here

09-19-2005, 08:25 AM	#2 (permalink)
bry623 Manager, The Conversation Pit/Analyst, Security Team Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: NW Territory circa 1787 Posts: 11,692 OS: winxp pro sp2	That would be cool. We have an 800 # here at work. I have given it out on rare ocassion. Could you imagine what I could get into with some of the anti-bush people? __________________ "If you aren't a liberal when you're 20, you have no heart. If you aren't a conservative when you are 50, you have no brain"

09-19-2005, 10:04 AM	#4 (permalink)
elf Manager, Microsoft Support Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Knoxville, TN or Austin, TX depending Posts: 7,038 OS: WinXP Pro SP3 and Windows 7 My System	Hey danrak...why didn't you buy skype before ebay did? surely you can afford 2.6billion... __________________ If TSF has helped you, Tell us about it! or Donate to help keep the site up! I do not subscribe to threads, so if I stop replying, PM me with a link to your thread so I can find it again.

09-19-2005, 12:30 PM	#5 (permalink)
DumberDrummer Cymru am byth Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Oregon Posts: 5,385 OS: Windows XP Pro SP2 My System	you know, ebay didn't have to buy it... buyers and sellers could have used skype to talk even before this. Even better and easier, they could have just partnered with AIM or something so that people could chat that way. Seems like overkill to me just for purchaser/seller conversations. I bet they have an ulterior motive. __________________ Living with Louie dog's the only way to stay sane _____________________________________________ ... and with those words so begins my lifetime of longing for the devil's warm embrace

09-19-2005, 09:04 PM	#8 (permalink)
Fox TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 7,752 OS: XP Pro, CentOS My System	I think an important part of this site is not just the help we provide to individual users, but the help that in turn is provided to people simply referencing it through the archives. With direct voice contact, we'd lose this, and it wouldn't be as effective. Then again, this would be helpful with some problems. __________________ Antec Neo Power 500W, ABIT IP35-E, Intel E2180@2.66Ghz, Corsair XMS2 2x1GB DDR2-800, PNY 8800GT, 320GB Seagate * lazy college student alert *- If I've inadvertently ignored a thread, please Let me know about it Have I helped you solve your problem? Donate to Techsupportforums Klart Skepp!

09-19-2005, 09:54 AM	#3 (permalink)
uripyores Mush Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Durham UK Posts: 724 OS: XP Home/Pro [SP3]	I was gonna get Skype but I've changed me mind now that ebay is involved. If they allow you to talk to the the buyer/seller I wonder how much more cash they will want. I hate ebay. [still go there tho ]

09-21-2005, 10:28 PM	#11 (permalink)
Chevy Retired Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Notlob Posts: 5,452 OS: Vista Ultimate My System	Amazing automobile ... 0-150 in 12.8 seconds! <insert>Homer Simpson drool sequence</insert>

09-21-2005, 11:31 PM	#12 (permalink)
40sondacurb Don't be a menace Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 6,285 OS: Vista sp2	how are you going to get over the old people driving a car without wings? Unless that thing has that turbo booster from knight car http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/~ac...es/Season1.mp3