Skype for Business

Skype for Business
Developer(s)Microsoft
Stable release
16.0.15601.20578 / March 3, 2023; 20 months ago (2023-03-03)
Operating systemWindows, macOS, Android and iOS
TypeAudio, Video, Instant Messaging
Websitewww.skype.com/en/business Edit this on Wikidata

Skype for Business (formerly Microsoft Lync and Office Communicator) is an enterprise software application for instant messaging and videotelephony developed by Microsoft as part of the Microsoft 365 (formerly Office) suite. It is designed for use with the on-premises Skype for Business Server software, and a software as a service version offered as part of 365. It supports text, audio, and video chat, and integrates with Microsoft 365 components such as Exchange and SharePoint.

The software was previously named Lync before rebranding to Skype for Business in 2015, co-branding it with the Microsoft-owned consumer messaging platform Skype (which had begun to integrate with Lync in 2013). Despite the same branding, Skype for Business and Skype have almost nothing in common and function as separate platforms.[1]

In September 2017, Microsoft announced that it would phase out Skype for Business Online in favor of Microsoft Teams, a new cloud-based collaboration platform. Support for Skype for Businesses Online ended in July 2021, although a new version of Skype for Business Server will be available with a subscription license.[2]

  1. ^ "Finding your way through Microsoft's maze of work and personal accounts". Archived from the original on May 30, 2020. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  2. ^ "The Next Version of Skype for Business Server". TECHCOMMUNITY.MICROSOFT.COM. September 25, 2020. Archived from the original on February 26, 2021. Retrieved April 8, 2022.