Disable Skype ads

[Feronix]

How to remove Skype ads

Hey guys,

So I did a fresh install of Windows 8 recently and after downloading the desktop version of Skype (which I much prefer over Metro apps) I realized that because of these fresh installs the ads were back in Skype, while I had them removed before. I figured this might be the right time for a small guide.

Disclaimer
The advertisements are put into Skype to keep it a free program. If they do not bother you, just leave them there. You can also become a premium member on Skype, which will remove any advertisements as well.
http://www.skype.com/premium/

For me, I like to make the chat windows as small as possible, so I can have them on the side of the screen while I'm doing other stuff. This means that the ads take up around half the chat window which is simply too much.

There are three steps to disabling the advertisements within Skype, the third step might not be necessary for you, but it can do no harm either.

Step one

In Skype, click Tools > Options > Notifications > Alerts & Messages. Uncheck both boxes and hit save in the bottom right corner. Quit Skype.

Step two

Open Internet Explorer (yeah, really) and go to Options > Internet Options in the top right corner. Go to the security tab and select 'Restricted sites'.

Then click on the 'Sites' button right below.

Type

https://apps.skype.com

and click the 'Add' button.

Then close the 'Restricted sites' window, hit Apply in the bottom right and close Internet Options and Internet Explorer.

Step three

Go into C:\Windows\System32\Drivers\etc and open the 'Hosts' file with notepad.

If you're on Windows 8(.1) you might have to give yourself permission to edit the file first. To do this, right click 'Hosts' and go to Properties. Go to the 'Security' tab and click 'Edit'. Select your user account and make sure that 'Allow' is checked for the 'Full control' option. Hit OK and try to open 'Hosts' with notepad again.

At the very bottom add the line

127.0.0.1 [tab]* apps.skype.com

*[tab] meaning that you hit the tab key instead of the spacebar to seperate the two.

Then save the 'Hosts' file and close it.

(Re)Start Skype. You should not see any ads, and if you followed all the steps correctly they won't show a few minutes later either. Enjoy

 

[RamboOC]

Step 1 and 3 should be enough
hosts file blocks the connections so that the ads can't be pulled, so don't see a point in step 2

 

[Feronix]

Step 1 and 3 should be enough
hosts file blocks the connections so that the ads can't be pulled, so don't see a point in step 2

That's why I said that step 3 was optional. Step 1 + 2 works for most people but did not for me personally so I decided to include all of them to make sure that everything is blocked. Doesn't hurt either way and literally only takes 2 minutes

 

[RamboOC]

No wonder why skype kept poping up with a message that the script has stopped working or something like that, It uses internet explorer!

 

[Thelosouvlakia]

Thank you, my lord!
And essentially yeah, that's why Microsoft still includes IE with windows

 

[Feronix]

No wonder why skype kept poping up with a message that the script has stopped working or something like that, It uses internet explorer!

I think these are general internet options. You can also access them via Control Panel
Using Internet Explorer makes sense for Skype though, as they're both made by Microsoft and IE cannot be removed from a PC.

Thank you, my lord!
And essentially yeah, that's why Microsoft still includes IE with windows

Glad I could help

 

[Greenback]

thanks old bean, first 2 did the trick