Luxembourg, December 15th, 2006 – Skype today announced two key personnel changes. Alex Kazim, Skype’s President, will be leaving Skype in January to return to eBay. Kazim, an 8-year eBay veteran, joined Skype immediately following eBay’s acquisition of the company 14 months ago. He was responsible for product development and innovation at Skype and reported to Niklas Zennström, Skype’s Chief Executive Officer.
During his tenure at Skype, Kazim played a central role in accelerating the company’s product and engineering infrastructure. Having successfully helped Skype grow and integrate with eBay, Kazim will return to eBay to work on major strategic projects for the company. In Kazim’s new role, he will report to Meg Whitman, eBay’s President and Chief Executive Officer.
“Alex has helped me and Skype’s executive team take the company to the next level,” said Zennström. “Without Alex, Skype would not be as far along as it is today. I’m sorry to see him head home, but look forward to continuing to work with him in his new role with Meg.”
With Kazim’s departure, Henry Gomez, Skype’s Chief Marketing Office and Director of Country Operations, has been named President. In his new role, Gomez will serve as an advisor to Zennstrom and the principal liaison with eBay and PayPal.
Gomez is a 7-year eBay veteran who joined Skype in November 2005 as general manager for North America, and built Skype’s US and Canadian business operations before becoming the company’s CMO. His current marketing responsibilities will be handled by the centralized London marketing team Gomez created in recent months.
Zennström and co-founder Janus Friis, along with Gomez and the rest of the Skype management team, remain actively focused on the global expansion of Skype’s business and continued integration with eBay and PayPal.
About Skype
Skype is the world's fastest-growing Internet communication offering, allowing unlimited free voice, video and instant messaging communication between users of Skype Software. With over 136 million registered users, Skype is available in 28 languages and is used in almost every country around the world. Skype generates revenue through its premium offerings such as making and receiving calls to and from landline and mobile phones, voicemail, call forwarding and personalization including ringtones and avatars. Skype also has relationships with a growing network of hardware and software providers.
Skype is an eBay company (NASDAQ: EBAY). To learn more visit skype.com.
Skype is not a replacement for your ordinary telephone and cannot be used for emergency calling.
Skype, SkypeIn, SkypeOut, Skype Me, Skype Certified, Skypecasts, associated logos and the “S” symbol are trademarks of Skype Limited.
