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Skype ( News - Alert) is working with a U.K. wireless carrier in order to bring to market a new product that would make Skype totally mobile, according to a Skype announcement.
Skype is ready to launch a customized cell phone developed together with 3 Mobile. Code-named “white phone,” the device will be release later this month in Italy, Britain, Hong Kong and Australia. The companies could license the technology to other carriers or sell them direct to consumers in America.
Until very recently, wireless carriers resisted mobile VoIP, requesting that manufacturers exclude WiFi  in order to prevent customers from making free or cheap VoIP calls utilizing hotspots as opposed to cellular networks. Phones with WiFi ( News - Alert) are now more readily available in the U.S., but many continue to have VoIP calling disabled.
It’s not for sure whether or not Skype’s new product involves a cell phone that offers a desktop-like experience for VoIP calls, but nevertheless it makes sense for Skype to mobilize VoIP on its own, instead of waiting for American carriers to warm up to the idea first.
Brian Solomon is a Web Editor for TMCnet, covering news in the IP communications, call center and customer relationship management industries. To see more of his articles, please visit Brian Solomon’s columnist page.
Don't forget to check out TMCnet’s White Paper Library, which provides a selection of in-depth information on relevant topics affecting the IP Communications industry. The library offers white papers, case studies and other documents which are free to registered users. Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) | X | | The IEEE 802.11 wireless LAN standard is usually referred to as Wi-Fi-Wireless Fidelity or RLAN-Radio Local Area Network. The 802.11 standard has evolved into a number of sub-standards 802.11a/b/g/n....more |
Voice over IP (VoIP) | X | | A real-time communications system that converts voice into digital packets containing media and signaling data that travel over networks using Internet Protocol....more |
Internet Protocol (IP) | X | | IP stands for Internet Protocol, a data-networking protocol developed throughout the 1980s. It is the established standard protocol for transmitting and receiving data
in packets over the Internet. I...more |
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