eBay buys Skype

eBay is buying Skype for $2.6 billion. Skype must be delirious with joy. I do understand what eBay can do with Skype's users, but they way overpaid, especially given there were few or no other suitors (News Corp ruled itself out). If Skype has 10 million or so users, that is $260 per user. For a "comparison" that is of course deeply flawed, Murdoch paid $580 million for 25 million MySpace users, or $23 per user. Maybe eBay was bored and stagnating and thought that buying Skype would force it into the next wave of strategic activity. Maybe eBay is too scared of Google's ecommerce plans and wants desperately to move more into the community space. Remember, eBay, that in the battle of VOIP clients with IM, versus IM clients with VOIP, the latter will totally thrash you.

On a related note, what is with Vonage's campaign in the UK? Get free UK calls for ten pounds a month? I don't know how the US works, but that is completely unappealing here. If you haven't already registered with OneTel or Telewest or whoever by now for the same deal, you are hardly likely to do it with Vonage.