News broke this morning that Facebook and Google are both looking to buy the web-video conferencing platform Skype. Internet marketers will want to see who comes out on top in this acquisition because the winner could offer brands more access to Skype's half a billion users.
Reuters reports that both companies are in early stage discussions with Skype. Google already has a similar service – Google Voice. In the past, Brafton has reported that Google has acquired companies to help with potential click-to-call ads.
Skye has its own “Click & Call Advertising” features for internet marketers, and many speculate that Google wants Skype to enhance the reach of its own mobile services.
Facebook, on the other hand, would be expanding its service offerings by entering the calling game with Skype. Should the social giant succeed in buying Skype, industry experts say it would give Facebook a lead on Google in terms of web-based calls. Plus, it would help the social network maintain and expand its active user base.
Trip Chowdhry, an analyst with Global Equities Research, told Reuters, “It puts Facebook two steps ahead of Google because of the number of Skype users.”
Brafton has reported that social media logins are rising – at Google expense. A Facebook/Skype partnership might help Facebook logins rise even further, which would make the social site even more valuable as a marketing channel.
