Russia's anti-monopoly watchdog on Tuesday cleared the local subsidiary of Microsoft to acquire the local division of Skype, the Internet communications company.
Microsoft completed its largest ever acquisition deal worth $8.5 billion by the middle of October. Formal closure of the deal in Russia was postponed pending clearance from the Federal Antimonopoly Service.
Skype, founded in 2003 and focused on the international long-distance calling market, has more than 500 million registered users. The monthly audience for its services is nearly 170 million users.
