Previously unassailable, the nearly free VoIP platform Skype has come under fire from industry observers. Some provide negative assessments of how well eBay Inc. has integrated Skype functions into its online auction platform – eBay acquired Skype in 2005. Meanwhile, users complain that SkypeOut, which lets Skypers connect to the PSTN, offers spotty quality of service. In December Skype’s president Alex Kazim returned to a position at eBay. Better news: although some wondered if the venerable Skype Journal was off the air for good having gone incommunicado after mid-December, the prolific blog is back in action, blaming technical difficulties for the radio silence.

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