When former Ebay chief executive Meg Whitman bought Skype in 2005, the internet phone service was meant to be the third jewel in her company’s crown.

Ebay’s e-commerce business was growing strong, as was PayPal, its payments unit. Skype, reasoned Ms Whitman, would weave these properties together, providing seamless voice over internet protocol (VoIP) calling for Ebay’s growing legion of users.