Mobile Phone Reviews
 
 
Skype And 3 Launch First Mobile Internet Phone

Wed, 31 Oct 2007

A new mobile phone handset has been launched by mobile phone operator 3 that will allow users to make free calls over the internet using telephony service Skype .

Called the 3 Skypephone, the handset can make both paid-for calls over the 3 network and free internet calls and instant messages to other Skype users, making it the first tailor-made phone for Skype calls .

While it is possible to access Skype from a number of other available handsets, this has involved downloading third-party software, a factor that has put off the majority of users.

To date, mobile phone companies have been unwilling to let users freely access Skype via their handsets for fear that it would hurt their business .

The Skypephone launches in the UK on Friday at a retail price of £49.99 on a pay as you go tariff, or free if taken out on a contract price plan, although PAYG customers will have to top up their account with a t least £10 each month to qualify for the free Skype-to-Skype calls .

As well as the UK, the 3 Skype-phone will be launched in countries including Australia, Denmark, Italy and Hong Kong .

With around 246 million registered users worldwide, Skype is one of the firms reshaping the global phone industry. The company will earn money from the new phone via a revenue-sharing deal with co-developers 3 .

Commenting on the launch, John Delaney, principal analyst at telecoms consultancy Ovum, said: "We think 3 might have something of a hit with the Skypephone. The package is attractive, and the cost of acquiring it is low."

Skype's acting chief executive, Michael van Swaaij, said: "It takes an innovative operator... to challenge traditional thinking and offer the kind of product other operators are still shying away from."

"It's is now truly mobile . Skype has now taken a giant step forward in the mobile arena."
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