ReadWriteWeb reports today that eBay is developing software that would replace the "guts" of Skype, but the company may lose a court battle with Skype's founders over rights to the core technology.
[eBay] said in a regulatory filing yesterday that if it fails in both the legal and technical avenues it's pursuing then "continued operation of Skype's business as currently conducted would likely not be possible."
Joltid, a company owned by Skype's founders, merely licensed some of the system's core technolgy to eBay when it sold Skype to the auction giant in 2005. Joltid now says that the license has been revoked and eBay is infringing on its rights by continuing to use the technology. The case is scheduled to go to court in June of 2010 but eBay is trying to replace the technology in the mean time. It may not succeed.
Skype As We Know It May Not Exist Much Longer, eBay Says (via @rmack)
