EBay Inc. (EBAY), by failing to flatly deny rumors of a sale of Skype, is now fueling those rumors.

In an interview with the Financial Times, eBay CEO John Donahue said that 2008 would be a year of testing synergies between its core business and Skype, which eBay bought for $2.6 billion in 2005 under the leadership of former eBay CEO Meg Whitman.

"If the synergies are strong, we'll keep it in our portfolio. If not, we'll reassess it," he said.

The synergies argument between the online auction site eBay and the Internet phone business Skype was always viewed with some skepticism, requiring some outside-the-box thinking because the two companies operated in such distinct sectors. EBay argued that Skype's communication network could transform the way its buyers and sellers connected. But even as IP communications grow, EBay has been unable to show that Skype is helping its buyers and sellers do business. 

Looks like eBay is only prepared to think outside the box for a little while longer. --Andrea Orr 

See April 2 post on Google-Skype rumors from TechConfidential
See April 17 post on Skype from FT.com