Can Facebook and Skype rule the world together?

With the two tech behemoths reportedly teaming up, commentators weigh in on the consequences of a Facebook-Skype partnership

A Facebook-Skype partnership could expand both companies' worldwide reach.
(Image credit: Corbis)

All Things Digital has reported that Facebook and Skype will announce a "significant and long-ranging partnership." If the report is true, Facebook users would "be able to send SMS messages and call each other using Skype," while Skype users would "gain access to Facebook Connect, the social networking site's messaging service." The two companies both have giant user bases, with Facebook boasting 500 million users, and Luxembourg-based Skype claiming 560 million registered accounts. What does their looming partnership mean for consumers — and for the future of communication?

Customers will flee phone companies: The integration "will almost certainly encourage the members of Facebook to turn to Skype for voice and perhaps data service," says Douglas A. McIntryre at 24/7 Wall Street. The majority of Facebook users are young, and "not tethered to the voice and data communications services of the past." And with phone companies set to introduce ever more expensive "tiered pricing," for cellphones, expect "a wave of customer defections" once Facebook and Skype join forces.

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