AfterDawn: News

Skype headed to iPhones by next week?

According to a report on GigaOM, Skype may be launching a mobile version of its VoIP service for iPhones as soon as next week.

Skype is currently available on the iPhone, but not officially, as you must use third-party applications to access the service. The report speculates that the official Skype application could be coming as soon as the CTIA Wireless trade that starts on April 1st.



In January, the company introduced Skype for Android phones, and Skype Lite currently works on Windows Mobile and Java devices.

Is mobile VoIP really worth it though? Liane Cassavoy of PC World would say it isn't, and adds:

“Most notably, the call quality remains iffy at best, and in some instances it's absolutely abominable. Also, depending on your calling habits, you may not see any savings at all. Most services still charge a per-minute rate, so you'll save on domestic calls only if you've exceeded your regular voice plan's allotment (in which case you might still be better off upgrading your voice plan).” She does note however, that for international callers, the savings are tremendous.

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 28 Mar 2009 14:53

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• 3 comments

• korgoth3

  Thats pretty ridiculous. voip specifically skype has great call quality, much better than cell phone quality. Not to mention, if youre calling another skype user then its free, and if youre calling a house phone, the charge is minimal. 3 bucks a month for unlimited calls, or 2 cents a minute. that doesnt sound too expensive to me.
  
  liane needs to get fired and give the position to someone that knows what they are talking about.

  28.3.2009 16:36 #1

• pollution

  I have had skype on my phone. HTC 8525. Poor people that buy into iphone hype.

  29.3.2009 11:34 #2

• Matt555

  This is also heading to the blackberry scene.
  There's a bit more on this story at crackberry.com (read below)
  
  This information has been floating around for a while now, but it seems this time around we can toss the 'official' flag over it rather then just the 'rumor' one. With CTIA just around the corner, it seems as though a lot of companies are already giving up some of the goods as to what they will be announcing at the Las Vegas Mobile showcase event, Skype included.
  
  Come May BlackBerry users will be able to get in on the Skype action as reported by Reuters who spoke with Skype's Chief Operating Officer Scott Durchslag who also verified it would become available for iPhone and iTouch users as well.
  
  One thing that was brought up was resistance from carriers to support the services as it may be revenue impacting for them to which CCS Insight Analyst Ben Wood declared carriers need not worry as the usage of Skype on mobile devices actually increases revenue for the carriers due to other services customers may utilize such as data. The only other concern may come from roaming agreements, but thus far have been unfounded and he used carrier 3 UK as an example where Skype has been used on their network with no detrimental effects.
  
  IM+ for Skype has been available for BlackBerry for a while now, but can be a bit tricky to setup and will set you back $29.95. Good news about the official Skype client is that it will be free. Anyone been waiting for a true Skype client to use on their BlackBerry?
  
  Here's the link for it: http://crackberry.com/skype-coming-blackberry-may

  30.3.2009 09:59 #3