Happy third birthday, Skype! Send us a card and win a prize
29th of August, next Tuesday, is Skype’s 3rd birthday. [See the original announcement](http://about.skype.com/2003/08/skype_beta_launched.html) and [the letter from Niklas on our first birthday](http://about.skype.com/2004/08/skype_celebrates_1_year_annive.html). While the figures quoted in that letter are quite small by today’s Skype standards, the following remains very true today and beyond.
> Today people are Skyping to and from every country in the world, enhancing free borderless knowledge exchange as people maintain contact with others as if they were around the corner, even when they are around the world. … Thank you for your involvement with Skype. We hope to continue delighting.
Here’s [a million thank you's](http://www.hallmark.com/ECardWeb/ECV.jsp?a=5172531983591M129849581Y) to everyone who has supported Skype over these three years 
and here’s also a My Picture for Skype.
### The birthday card
If you want to celebrate our 3rd birthday with us, you don’t have to send us expensive gifts or flowers. But you can send a birthday card. **Please e-mail your birthday card to
We’ll publish the better cards right here on Share.Skype together with the authors’ Skype Names, and we also have a Grand Jury to select the one and only best card who wins a prize (see below).
We appreciate everything we receive, but original content creations (as opposed to readymade e-cards such as the one I used above) have the best chance of winning.
Birthday card entry submission is open until September 3rd 2006, 23:59:59 GMT (next Sunday). So you basically got this and the next weekend to work on it. We publish the winners and deliver the prize a few weeks after that.
### The prize
The best birthday card author will receive one [USR9610 speakerphone](http://www.usr-emea.com/products/p-voip-product.asp?prod=voip-9610a) AND one [USR9601 USB Internet Phone](http://www.usr-emea.com/products/p-voip-product.asp?prod=voip-9601a) from our friends at [US Robotics](http://www.usr.com), shipped to you anywhere in the world totally free.
UPDATE: the grand prize winner ALSO receives the [Skype Cordless VoIP Dualphone](http://www.amperordirect.com/pc/c-internet-phones/internet-phone-dualphone.html) from [AmperorDirect.com](http://www.amperordirect.com), shipped to you for free.
]]>### Trivia
I spoke with [Ott](http://about.skype.com/executiveteam/ottkaukver/) about the first days of Skype in August and September of 2003. Here’s what he had to say…
> I got a call from Taavet, one of Skype’s original creators who still works with us, who asked me to install this new software. They had a drive to get to 15 online users. The next big goal was 50 — it took a lot of calling and persuasion to get there when we got to 100 online users, it lifted off.
### The banners that didn’t make the cut
We tried several rounds of the “3rd birthday banner” you see on the top of this article. Here are the other ones we tried that didn’t make the cut to the top.
(bow)
29th was a Friday in 2003, I remember calling up (using cellphone) a few friends that coming Monday to get online to break 100 online user record. A thousand and 10k came in a whiz after that.
Something i don’t like about the slogan “Now three, still free” … the “still” implies that it could be different in the future.
I know this was NOT the intention to suggest this!
I would change it: “Now three, always free”
Jean
Happy bday friends!!!
Happt Birthday to Skype. Thanks for making our days easier. We love you Free Forever……………….
Happy Birthday to all of you at Skype
Keep up the good work of making people happy.
I am so happy I am using you to communicate with my friends, Thank you,, Anna in the Caribbean
Well happy birthday to all of you at skype.
Keep up the good work at making people happy.
I am very happy that I can keep intouch with my friends through your airwaves.
Thank you from… Anna in the Caribbean
Still free? Sorry, but SkypeIn is not exactly FREE but it’s still “malfunctioning”… If you mean FREE, as Freedom, you right. Anyway, happy birhtday, with all its problems, Skype is the BEST! And getting even better. Keep going…
Happt Birthday to Skype!Thanks for making our work easier.
Here’s to SKYPE for making the world a smaller place!
Hand of God for Skype’s birthday:
England-based Skype receives a perplexing happy birthday card from a business partner in Argentina that highlights the soccer rivalry between the countries, via Maradona’s classic goals in the 1986 World Cup.
http://www.verosee.com/handofgod2mb.mov (low resolution)
http://www.verosee.com/handofgod8mb.mov (high resolution)
Happy birthday, Skype!
Happy Birthday =)
Three Years, still free, it’s nice
congratulation, it’s great!
Happy Birthday Skype!
I just love your motto and with your technology you created a breakthrough in quality and cost of communication. Thanks!
… and keep it free!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY SKYPE!!! YOU GUYS ROCK!!!!
KEEP IT FREE…………
HAPPY BIRTHDAY SKYPE!!! YOU GUYS ROCK!!!!
KEEP IT FREE…………
happy bithday to you my skype!!
thanks for you alot we loves you alot
but here in afghanistan is not skype credits to
hope you give me one free.
thanks
Happy birth day Skype, skype service is very nice,inexpensive, reliable i am using since from one year i and trust on its service.
Regards and thanks.
Clear cards