When Slack announced new voice and video services the 2009 week, the enterprise messaging startup signalled moving into territory covered with sites like Microsoft's Skype. Nevertheless feels like it is not your only moment while the two company's paths have crossed couple of years.

Microsoft eyed Slack in the form of potential acquisition target as almost as much as $8 billion, TechCrunch has heard. But an enclosed campaign around making a special offer neglected to drum up support. Microsoft co-founder Bill gates and CEO Satya Nadella were amongst those unconvinced by its idea, with Gates pushing instead to increase more features into Skype finances more competitive with Slack while in the business market, our source says.

Slack's momentum in grabbing new users - it currently has 2.3 million daily active users, 675,000 of these paying - should make it a competitive threat for other individuals who will be expecting to lead in enterprise collaboration services.

It's not surprising that in in 2009, Slack had already had 8-10 acquisition offers.

The individual at Microsoft leading the charge on Slack was EVP of applications and services Qi Lu. Lu, in step with his Microsoft executive profile page, oversees all productivity, communications, education, search and various other information services at Microsoft, the actual also "sets the vision, strategy and overall direction of one's Applications and Services Group," including R&D for Microsoft Office, Office 365, SharePoint, Exchange, Yammer, Lync, Skype, Bing, Bing Apps, MSN and also the Advertising platforms and business group.

Damage that Lu had envisaged a Slack acquisition for as almost as much as $8 billion, an intriguing figure given various other news this week with respect to startup. Slack was valued at $2.8 billion in their last announced funding round of $160 million in April 2015. However, we yet others have ever heard that Slack is raising another round which is between $150 million and $300 million. Our sources have pegged its valuation for that fundraise at $5 billion; others place the figure at between $3.5 billion and $4 billion.

You can think of why the technique of a Slack acquisition brings out both supporters and critics at Microsoft.

On one hand, Microsoft has produced and acquired several other companies in the area of enterprise collaboration, including SharePoint, Yammer, Lync and Skype. Simply put, the skills are usually there for Microsoft to put together unique Slack competitor without resorting to obtaining the startup and integrating an additional company directly into the mix.

Then again, Slack has captured mindshare inside enterprise space in a way that Microsoft yet others haven't managed to do. Slack's a fairly easy onboarding procedure that gets employees emailing one another quickly. Definitely one of its key features has become items has integrated with many other apps. Men and women who to make use of can quickly get in touch with files from elsewhere with short codes to debate or monitor the progress on projects with colleagues, might be so as to entertain friends a small.

Prestashop has expanded as time passes with an increase of integration-based functionality, similar to ordering an Uber or Lyft from the inside the app. Slack was pushing its cred becoming a platform by investing appropriate developers' fund and launching an innovative app directory pursuing this past year. It celebrated its two-year birthday in February and after this has 2.3 million active daily users, with 675,000 paid seats. The agency says it's seeing a lot more $64 million in annual recurring revenue from its freemium business model.

Skype itself will be adding features into its platform to better its functionality for consumer and business use. They include group video calling on iOS and Android, enhancing Skype for Business to more platforms or a Skype integration with Slack.

"At Skype, we will be focused on wearing communication barriers and acquiring the whole planet talking," the agency noted gets hotter announced a preview using the Slack service. "This is why we make Skype entirely on multiple platforms and attempt to explore different options to enable you keep in touch." That might be also how you can lay groundwork immediately after only more dynamic functionality ahead.

You'll find another coincidental overlap between Lu and Butterfield: both worked at Yahoo likewise. Butterfield ran the Flickr photo service he co-founded and sold to Yahoo while Lu was EVP of engineering for search and advertising.

Both Microsoft and Slack declined to comment because of it story.