Partners Applaud Microsoft Acquisition Of Talko To Bolster Business Communications
Microsoft has acquired Talko, a mobile app for on-the-go business communications, in order to bolster its Skype For Business services within Office 365, the company announced Monday.
Partners cheered the acquisition as a win for Microsoft's Office 365 portfolio, which they said can now include Talko's text, voice and video capabilities to enable streamlined communication.
"I think this is a very smart acquisition for further adding to Microsoft’s initial Skype investment," said Michael Goldstein, president and CEO of LAN Infotech, a Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Microsoft partner. "[This acquisition] also will further expand on the Skype For Business Offering."
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Boston-based Talko, which was launched in 2014, enables simple conferencing communications for business users by combining voice and text messaging features. For instance, the app contains tools that allow users to organize and even replay their conversations with colleagues.
Skype For Business is a fairly new, enterprise-focused version of the video-and-messaging Skype platform that Microsoft purchased in 2011. The platform provides Office 365 users with an all-in-one communications solution.
"The addition of this technology enhances Skype for Business by allowing non-participants to review, (even) after the fact, ... a conversation that now can include not only text and voice and video, but also text messages, photographs and recorded audio conversations, all in a single stream," said Doug Grosfield, president and CEO of Five Nines IT Solutions, a solution provider and Microsoft partner based in Kitchener, Ontario.
"The positive impact on collaboration and effective team communications, even if the integration went no further, will be impressive," Grosfield said in an email. "However, we know from experience that the Redmond giant will continue to build on the expertise and functionality the Talko team and product brings to the table, and that can only spell great things for Office 365 and the Skype platform going forward."
Talko, which was originally seen as a team collaboration tool competitor to Skype, was led by former Microsoft Chief Technical Officer Ray Ozzie.
Talko's services will officially shut down in March 2016, and will be folded into Microsoft's Skype For Business. Terms of the acquisition, including the purchase price, were not disclosed.
"I … am excited about how Talko will fuel more innovation at Microsoft, whether it is enhancing the way family members stay in touch with Skype or building on the new Skype for Business services within Office 365," said Gurdeep Singh Pall, corporate vice president of Skype, in a blog post. "This is another example of our company ambition to reinvent productivity and business processes. We continue to invest in new technologies to empower people to more effectively communicate and collaborate across their personal and professional lives."
PUBLISHED DEC. 21, 2015