Jibe Mobile announced today that it’s launched a service that consumers will be able to access and use to connect and chat with their friends through their mobile phones.

 

This service is available on a limited basis by request at Jibe Mobile’s Web site, according to the company.

 

Jibe officials say their company provides easy access to online content as well as the best content on the Web. It also allows users to share content to socialize with friends on the Web or on their phone, according to the company. Jibe offers chat and sharing of content across social networks, carrier networks and devices, according to the company. It also covers the following modes of communication: mobile-to-mobile, mobile-to-Web, Web-to-mobile and Web-to-Web, company officials say.

 

According to Amir Sarhangi, co-founder and chief executive officer of Jibe Mobile, “People often use videos and photos to start a conversation, but on the mobile phone this is much more difficult to do. Mobile messaging has traditionally been text and limited photo sharing. It’s a hassle to use your phone to access media (YouTube, Flickr, Photobucket (News - Alert) etc.) on the Web and even more difficult to share it with your friends. We’re addressing this problem and turning a regular mobile phone into a media socialization hub, with just two clicks.”

 

In order to use this service, a user has to first visit www.jibemobile.com and sign up for a free account. As soon as Jibe is installed on the user’s phone, Jibe will connect with his social network and locate all his contacts on his phone, company officials say. Once this is done, the contact details and status of friends are located in one place, that is, in the user’s mobile phone. Using Jibe, the user will be able to find out what his friends are doing, who is online, and also share, message and chat with his friends, according to the company.

 

The “Jibe Shout” is described by company officials as an innovative way of getting a friend’s attention, similar to a voice poke. Officials say the feature consists of a variety of fun, edgy prerecorded messages that are transmitted and then played on the user’s friend’s mobile phone or through the Jibe widget on the Web.

 

Jibe officials say their service offers support for more than 100 handsets including Blackberry, LG, Motorola, Nokia (News - Alert), Samsung and Sony-Ericsson. If the recipient of a message is not a Jibe member, he/she will receive an email or SMS text to view the JibeShare on the Web.