Microsoft Messenger to be shut down on April 8

BANGALORE, INDIA: In a mail to its Messenger users on Tuesday, Microsoft has announced that upgrade from Messenger to Skype would begin on April 8, not on March 15, as announced earlier.

This is Microsoft's effort to retire Messenger globally with the exception of Mainland China.

"To keep chatting with your Messenger contacts, simply upgrade to the latest version of Skype and sign in using a Microsoft account (this is the same ID you use to sign into Messenger). Once signed in, your contacts will already be there. You'll be able to instant message and make video calls with them just like before," the mail read.

With Skype upgrade you can get Instant message, share files and contacts and group video calls with over 10 friends at once. The Skype upgrade is available on iPhone, iPad, Android and Windows Phone 8.

After the upgrade, Messenger users on Windows and Mac desktops will not be able to sign in and will only be able to upgrade to Skype. If you attempt to sign in, a notification will appear, and if you continue, you will be taken through the installer flow, to install Skype and automatically uninstall Messenger at the same time.

For the record, Microsoft acquired Skype for $8.5 billion in May 2011. It was subsequently integrated with Facebook and other platforms, which accounted for its ever-growing popularity.