The 2013 International CES is over and done with, and outside of all the rumors about cheaper iPhones, eyes are slowly starting to turn towards the next generation of video game consoles. Rumors are starting to leak out every day now, but some details seem closer and closer to the truth now that the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) is on the horizon.
One rumor that increasingly looks true at this point is that Microsoft is opting to use Skype as the default messaging and voice chat system for the next Xbox.
Citing "a person familiar with the matter," Web site Computer and Video Games is reporting that the company is "consolidating all their communications technology" around Skype. Instead of chatting through a specifically-designed Xbox Live chat service, users will instead use Skype.
"You might jump to the conclusion that we'll see asynchronous voice and video messages in next-gen Xbox Live," added the site's source.
In addition to anonymous sources, job postings during the past year also hinted at Skype integration in the future Xbox. A job advertisement last year sought out a UI designer specifically for Skype-related Xbox development.
"The team you'll join is responsible for Skype in the living room (broadly the home), across various devices but with a focus on the large screen and the next generation of Xbox," said the ad.
The movement doesn't seem limited to Xbox, though. If it involves all their communication technology, it likely means that future Microsoft PCs and tablets will come with built-in Skype capabilities.
The decision makes a lot of sense; after all, Microsoft has to do something with Skype, a company it bought for $8.5 billion back in May 2011. It makes no sense for the company to develop a unique chat system for each platform when it can run everything more efficiently through Skype, and it seems like that's what it's going to do.
The change is already under way, too. On Jan. 9, Microsoft announced that it will be shutting down its Messenger service in March and subsequently moving all of its users to Skype.
