Microsoft is closing its Skype office in London. The company also plans to reduce its staff in line with a job cut plan it had announced in July. This past week, the company terminated 300 employees globally. Most of these people worked in Puget Sound, Washington.

The company's decision to close its Skype office in London comes at the time when the British technology industry is looking to maintain its standing following the country's decision to exit European Union (UN). According to the Financial Times, Microsoft said that the decision was taken to "unify some engineering positions, potentially putting at risk a number of globally focused Skype and Yammer roles."

Skype was founded in London in 2003. Microsoft bought the business in 2011 for $8.5 billion. The company employed nearly 400 people in its London office. According to The Verge, Skype will keep its global offices open. The business has several offices in Vancouver, Palo Alto, and in various locations in Europe.

After the acquisition of Skype, Microsoft had been integrating the company into its head office. The Financial Times reported that various Skype employees pointed out that Skype executives had been replaced by Microsoft employees. One former employee told FT, "I know it's natural to integrate, but Skype is a shell of the company it once was."

Microsoft has announced its plan to terminate 2,850 employees globally by the end of this fiscal year. In May, the company also announced a plan to retrench 1,850 employees. As on June 30, Microsoft had nearly 114,000 employees on its roster.