[...] Seattlepi.com has takes from several quarters, including GigaOM, Ben Brooks and Lost Remote. Redmond Magazine, which covers all-things-Microsoft, essentially just reports the news. Ben Horowitz, a general partner in venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, was laudatory: Today, I tip my hat to an old rival, Microsoft. By acquiring Skype, Microsoft becomes a much stronger player in mobile and the clear market leader in Internet voice and video communications. More importantly, Microsoft gets a team, ably lead by the exceptional Tony Bates, that can compete with anyone. [...]