An announcement from Microsoft has revealed that the company intends to shut down its Windows Live Messenger service in March 2013, opting instead to focus on Skype’s messaging solution.
Microsoft’s Skype division president Tony Bates said in a blog post “We will retire Messenger in all countries worldwide in the first quarter of 2013 (with the exception of mainland China where Messenger will continue to be available).”
Microsoft purchased Skype for $8.5 billion last year and have been steadily increasing the emphasis that the company has placed on the product.
Skype are offering a method for Live Messenger users to migrate their contacts over to the messaging and VoIP service which is integrated into the sign-in process. Existing Messenger users who have yet to take Skype for a spin will see their contacts automatically swapped over.
Source: BBC