M&A Deal Summary

Microsoft Acquires Skype

On May 10, 2011, Microsoft acquired internet software and services company Skype from Silver Lake and eBay for 8.5B USD

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is Microsoft’s 25th transaction in the Internet Software and Services sector.
  • This is Microsoft’s 4th largest (disclosed) transaction.
  • This is Microsoft’s 1st transaction in Luxembourg.

M&A Deal Summary

Date 2011-05-10
Target Skype
Sector Internet Software and Services
Buyer(s) Microsoft
Sellers(s) Silver Lake
eBay
Deal Type Add-on Acquisition
Deal Value 8.5B USD
Advisor(s) Goldman Sachs
J.P. Morgan Securities (Financial)

Target

Skype

Luxembourg, Luxembourg
website
Skype office in Palo Alto, California.
Skype office in Palo Alto, California.
Skype provides internet based communication tools and software for individuals and businesses. Skype was formed in 2003.

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Buyer(S) 1

Buyer

Microsoft

Redmond, Washington, United States

website


Category Company
Founded 1975
Sector Software
Employees221,000
Revenue 211.9B USD (2023)
DESCRIPTION
Entrance to Microsoft's corporate headquarters in Redmond, Washington.
Entrance to Microsoft's corporate headquarters in Redmond, Washington.

Microsoft is a global technology company that offers a broad spectrum of software products, services, and devices designed to help individuals and organizations across various sectors. Its extensive portfolio includes the Windows operating systems, the Microsoft Office suite for productivity, and the Azure cloud computing platform, providing solutions for computing, analytics, storage, and networking. Microsoft also delves into enterprise applications with Dynamics 365, connects professionals via LinkedIn, and engages gamers through its Xbox brand and related services. Additionally, it offers internet services such as Bing for web search, Outlook.com for email, and Skype for communication. Microsoft was formed in 1975 and is based in Redmond, Washington.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 114 of 212
Sector (Internet Software and Services) 25 of 57
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 110 of 199
Country (Luxembourg) 1 of 1
Year (2011) 1 of 3
Size (of disclosed) 4 of 33
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2010-10-30 Canesta

Sunnyvale, California, United States

Canesta, Inc. provides 'electronic perception' technology that sight-enables machines.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2011-10-12 Twisted Pixel Games

Austin, Texas, United States

Twisted Pixel will now bring its talented team of developers to Microsoft Studios to help incubate and develop the future of game and entertainment offerings on Microsoft’s Xbox 360 platform.

Buy -

Seller(S) 2

SELLER

Silver Lake

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

website


Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1999
PE ASSETS 60.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Silver Lake is a mega-sized private equity firm focused on a broad range of growth investments in and acquisitions of technology companies. Silver Lake is subdivided into several investing groups including Silver Lake Partners, Silver Lake Sumeru, Silver Lake Waterman, Silver Lake Alpine, and Silver Lake Kraftwerk. Silver Lake Partners pursues large-scale private investments in companies within the technology, tech-enabled and related growth industries. Silver Lake Sumeru invests in middle market technology companies with established business models and attractive growth prospects where there is an opportunity to create value through operational transformation. Silver Lake Waterman provides growth capital to later-stage companies in the technology and technology-enabled industries, offering flexible solutions to finance expansion and acquisitions. Silver Lake Alpine is Silver Lake's debt and credit investing arm. Silver Lake Kraftwerk provides growth capital to technology and tech-enabled businesses driving efficiency across the operations, energy, and resources industries. Silver Lake Partners was formed in 1999 is headquartered in Menlo Park, California.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 12 of 57
Sector (Internet Software and Services) 1 of 10
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 4 of 18
Country (Luxembourg) 1 of 1
Year (2011) 3 of 6
Size (of disclosed) 3 of 17
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2011-04-26 Smart Modular Technologies

Newark, California, United States

Smart Modular Technologies is a developer and manufacturer of DRAM and Flash-based modules and subsystems for computing, communications, embedded, and defense applications. Smart Modular Technologies was founded in 1988 and is based in Newark, California.

Buy $645M
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2011-05-31 Virtu Financial

New York, New York, United States

Virtu Financial is an active market maker across all major financial centers including equities, fixed income, currencies, futures, energy products and other commodities. Virtu Financial was founded in 2008 and is based in New York, New York.

Buy -
SELLER

eBay

San Jose, California, United States

website


Category Company
Founded 1995
Sector Internet Software and Services
Employees11,600
Revenue 9.8B USD (2022)
DESCRIPTION
Entrance to eBay's corporate headquarters in San Jose, California.
Entrance to eBay's corporate headquarters in San Jose, California.

eBay is an online retailer and provider of auction tools and services. eBay enables global commerce and payments on behalf of users, merchants, retailers and brands of all sizes. The technologies and services eBay provides are designed to enable users and merchants worldwide to organize and offer their inventory for sale and buyers to find, buy and pay for it virtually anytime and anywhere. eBay was incorporated in 1995 and is based in San Jose, California.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 2 of 14
Sector (Internet Software and Services) 2 of 10
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 1 of 2
Country (Luxembourg) 2 of 2
Year (2011) 1 of 1
Size (of disclosed) 2 of 6
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2011-04-20 Where.com

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Where is a location media company and local discovery mobile application. The Company was formed in 2004 and is based in Boston, Massachusetts.

Buy $135M
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2011-06-23 Magento

Campbell, California, United States

Magento, Inc. is a provider of cloud commerce innovation to merchants and brands across B2C and B2B industries. Magento, Inc. was founded in 1985 and is based in Campbell, California.

Buy $180M