Skype's architecture is changing to match the changes in user base. As more and more tablets, phones, televisions and other devices which can't act as a supernode are added - and will be added in future - Skype needs to run more servers to pick up the slack. The notion that this is for eavesdropping purposes at the behest of the NSA is best left to the tinfoil hat brigade.
That said, you'd be ill advised to depend on Skype being more secure than a regular phone call. As a commercial service it is subject to all the kinds of pressures telco's face.
Not quite - CALEA legally requires telcos to cooperate with law enforcement and implement infrastructure for wiretapping. As far as I'm aware, no such law applies to Microsoft as they aren't a carrier under said law.
So any eavesdropping Microsoft lets law enforcement do is voluntary, whereas telcos have a legal requirement in this regards.
Metadata (call logs and such) is another story and are equally unprotected in practice.
Skype's architecture is changing to match the changes in user base. As more and more tablets, phones, televisions and other devices which can't act as a supernode are added - and will be added in future - Skype needs to run more servers to pick up the slack. The notion that this is for eavesdropping purposes at the behest of the NSA is best left to the tinfoil hat brigade.
That said, you'd be ill advised to depend on Skype being more secure than a regular phone call. As a commercial service it is subject to all the kinds of pressures telco's face.