Skype is hiring a whole lot of engineers. Many of them will work on the company�s mobile applications, as we reported earlier this week, and many will work on cloud-based implementations of Skype that would include working with third parties such as LinkedIn. This hiring binge is part of Skype�s big expansion in Silicon Valley, something I wrote about in July 2010.

The company has leased 90,000 square feet of office space in the Stanford Research Park at 3210 Porter Drive in Palo Alto, with Jonathan Christensen, Skype�s media platform chief, heading company�s operations in Silicon Valley. A Skype spokeswoman recently told me:

We�ve gone from just a few engineers here this time last year to nearly 80 engineers, and they are coming from all over, including from the big name Valley companies too. Times are tough with the talent wars, but we�re determined, and we�re only just at the beginning with plans to significantly scale up our engineer workforce in Silicon Valley. And, while the perk of a 10 percent raise or spot bonus sounds good, it�s also about getting a great opportunity on the ground floor, working on really cool stuff that can make a huge impact.