Microsoft will continue Skype 'classic' support after negative customer feedback
Skype 7's demise has been greatly exaggerated (for now).
The death of Skype 7 (or Skype classic) has been delayed, following "customer feedback", according to Microsoft .
Microsoft originally announced on July 16 that classic Skype would be discontinued on Sept. 1, 2018 and encouraged users to upgrade to version 8.0. After many lamented the "upgrade" and clogged up the comments on the original discontinuation blog post, Microsoft have decided to continue supporting Skype 7 for "some time".
The message that was left on the original post, as reported by Microsoft blog Thurrott, was simple: "Thanks for all your comments - we are listening." A Microsoft spokesperson told CNET they have nothing more to share beyond the blog post at this time.
Since the about-face, users have returned to the post with slightly more positive attitudes and even a hint of gratitude. Many of the early complaints about Skype 8.0 were that it forced users to upgrade to a new service completely devoid of the features that made Skype classic great. Those changes were made in an effort to make the desktop version of Skype's UI appear a little more closer to Microsoft's vision for the app on mobile. Some even compared the change to the similar experience Microsoft tried with the very-forgettable Windows 8.
It appears, for now, that Skype classic will continue being supported -- at least until Microsoft can transplant much-loved features to its updated version.
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Update 10:02 p.m.: Adds additional Microsoft comment.