I remember when Skype first came out, when I was a teenager. I called a random guy in Japan; he was learning English, I wanted to learn Japanese (as is tradition for teenage anime fans). It was a very kind series of calls, and we talked a bit about Japanese culture too. He taught me, rather patiently, how to pronounce certain basic words properly.
It’s a shame the service was treated like it has been. There was great potential in connecting people.

Wherever you are, random Japanese dude I forgot the name of, konbanwa!!