Microsoft’s $8bn (£5bn) acquisition of Skype on Tuesday certainly had the markets asking why the software blue-chip has paid so much cash for a loss making consumer service. As the markets closed Microsoft’s stock was slightly down, suggesting investors weren't convinced of the reasons behind the acquisition.

As a Product Manager, I work closely with the Unified Communications (UC) team at Microsoft.I'm more than aware of their aggressive UC cloud strategy, spearheaded by Office 365, of which Lync (formally Office Communications Server) is a key component.

Lync is Microsoft’s first instant messaging, voice & video platform that is truly cloud enabled,  with one key weakness, the ability to dial out of the platform and make traditional phone calls still requires you to purchase and install on premise equipment.

What Microsoft’s investors are missing is the fact that while Skype is a consumer brand, the global platform with PSTN breakout unlocks the ability for Microsoft to offer businesses a true SaaS model for the provision of voice, video and conferencing services.

Undoubtedly, there are many reasons for this acquisition, and the Skype brand will immediately be put to work against the backdrop of the Xbox Live network.

But one thing is for sure, with their hands on the Skype platform, Microsoft have taken themselves one step closer to a complete cloud communications proposition accelerating the markets propensity to switch from traditional telephony to IP services.

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