It seems that VoIP giant Skype is at a crossroads. Reuters reported yesterday that both Google and Facebook are in talks with Skype about potential partnerships. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has reportedly been discussing buying Skype, a deal which could be valued at around $4 billion. These potential partnerships and/or buyouts are supposedly why Skype delayed their initial public stock offering last August, which totaled around $1 billion.

What would partnerships with either online giant mean for Skype?

If Skype decided to partner up with Facebook, their services would fill the gap that Facebook currently has with regards to video chat. Skype already has integrated Facebook into their platform, allowing their users to call their Facebook friends through Skype.

A Facebook-Skype partnership or buyout would propel Skype into the social sphere, which may not be what the company is currently striving for. Skype’s latest endeavors suggest that the company is looking to expand their business-to-business channels to enhance services for both small businesses and enterprises. Offering services to a range of businesses could be the key to how Skype makes money, integrating with Google, who already have a variety of compelling tools for businesses, could help Skype reach this goal.

A partnership between Skype and Google would allow also benefit both parties, but in different ways. Google could leverage Skype’s engaged users, this past March Skype surpassed having 30 million concurrent users online and their present number of users stands around 124 million a month. While Skype could leverage Google’s business tools to offer a more concise business product to their customers.

What do you think about the above speculations? Which choice is best for Skype? Who would benefit most from partnering/acquiring Skype, Google or Facebook? Is $4 billion a viable sum?