A Google marketing executive woke up to really bad news last month: terrorists used Google Earth to target a bomb, killing British soldiers. Evildoers using your service is a tough headline.

Some day Skypers will watch a YouTube video of a horrific crime committed using Skype.

• A kidnapper calls in a ransom.
• Conspirators coordinate attacks.
• An orphanage burns down because emergency dispatchers couldn't understand a Skype Out call. 
• Terrorists force hostages to play backgammon.

eBay's been through this kind of thing. The next time someone tries to sell a body part or a nuclear trigger, you can watch eBay (1) look hard at the new facts then (2) respond quickly. Most of their challenges have been the kinds you'd expect. Some, like the December explosion on the eBay campus, you don't.

Is Skype ready for a strong defense told with humility, compassion, and conviction? Which talking points will best make Skype's case? Will Skype just defend their business (the "it's not our fault when customers cross the line"), or are they prepared to argue for the liberties of their hundreds of millions of Skypers? Should Skype embrace a rhetoric of free speech and privacy rights, and back it up with action?

We know any large population has some people who will do bad things. Same goes for Skype's growing network. I worry, just a little, that in the hurry to respond, Skype could miss an opportunity to define itself as more than a phone company. Skype can align itself with rich, culture-spanning values. 

AIESEC is a student run organization that runs a college student work exchange program. But at its core is the belief that helping young business people live and work and make friends in another country changes them. And that those changes can prevent wars. I encourage you to find and support a local chapter near you, They have a mission above and beyond their operations. A cause.

I won't pretend to know or understand Skype's or eBay's beliefs beyond those driven by commerce. But Skype is becoming more important in the world. Millions of netizens the world over bring Skype into their daily lives. And Skype, a private network, is changing our idea of what it means to stay in touch with someone, to make friends, to make a call.

The more Skype touches us, changes our lives, the more Skype has duties:

• To discover what this means to our humanity
• To master the articulation of that meaning
• To advocate for the values reflected within.

Values endure. As we debate Skype's brand and rate structure, let's remember that "values" are more than money. They fuel our allegiances, our actions, our choices. They frame our personal identity. They define how we think about companies and products.

Somewhere in here is an agenda item or two; for whom? I don't know. And this plainly applies to companies other than Skype.

Have a great weekend.