Skype to start serving ads in US, Germany and UK ahead of upcoming IPO

It’s a common problem, not having as much cash as you want to, and Skype ‘s solving it with a common web solution: advertising . It may come as a surprise to hear that the eminently popular voice and chat service doesn’t peddle stuff to its users already, but it’s now formalizing a plan to introduce a carefully controlled measure of paid-for display ads on the Home tab of its Windows desktop client. You heard that right, there’s no mention of Mac or mobile services here, and it’s further limited to the nations of Germany, the UK, and USA. Anonymous data may be collected as part of the new scheme to target ads to specific audiences (you can, however, opt out), while Skype promises that user experience remains paramount to its future goals, though clearly that looming Initial Public Offering isn’t too far from its thoughts right now either. Skype to start serving ads in US, Germany and UK ahead of upcoming IPO originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 07 Mar 2011 12:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink

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