Negative user feedback in a Microsoft community forum has caused the company, for now at least, to continue supporting Skype Classic.
In July, Microsoft announced that it would
stop supporting Skype Classic on Sept. 1 and require users to move to the new version of the online video communications application if they wanted to continue using the service.
But that July 16 directive didn't go over well with many Skype users, who flooded a Microsoft community web page with criticisms of the move and complaints about problems they have experienced using the latest Version 8.0 of Skype.
Now, after listening hard to the critiques, Microsoft has announced that the planned ending of support for Skype Classic, also known as Skype 7.0, is off the table—at least for now.
In an Aug. 6 update on the Microsoft Community page, a Skype page moderator named Babs announced the company's change of heart.
"Update: Based on customer feedback,
we are extending support for Skype 7 (Skype classic) for some time," wrote Babs. "Our customers can continue to use Skype classic until then. Thanks for all your comments—we are listening. We are working to bring all the features you've asked for into Skype 8. Watch this space."
In response to an email query from
eWEEK, a Microsoft spokesperson said the company had no further comment on the move. The spokesperson would not say how long Microsoft will continue to support Skype Classic.