How did Whatsapp beat Skype? Couldn't you basically do what everyone does in Whatsapp, with Skype?

Is there any way to recover anything from Skype?
I only just found out that it got killed. I didn't have it installed in this computer, but I remember my old account. I know any chat logs are most likely long gone, but if there's at least any way of logging in and seeing my contacts it'll be better than nothing.