PC cable enables free Skype calls on mobile phones

- Gary Thayer, Editor

September 30, 2005 -- (MobileVillage) -- Users of the popular Internet telephoney software Skype now have new options to forward calls to their mobile phone.

Skype for Windows 1.4 lets callers forward incoming Skype calls to another Skype account for free. Users can also forward calls to up to three landline or mobile numbers for as little as two cents a minute, depending on the country.

The new Skype version is also easier to install, taking less than three minutes. Users can import contacts from Microsoft Outlook directly into their Skype buddy lists and to make one-click calls to numbers and names from Internet Explorer and Outlook.

The software is available at skype.com.

The Swedish-Norwegian company IPdrum is marketing its Mobile Skype Cable, a product that connects Skype software to a mobile telephone and allows users to make mobile calls worldwide over the Internet via Skype, for little or no cost.

Users install IPdrum's patent-pending software on their primary PC, and the IPdrum cable to connect an old mobile handset (base phone) to the PC's USB and sound ports. When the software is installed, the old handset acts as a gateway/bridge for the Skype application, allowing the user to forward calls to the mobile phone he or she currently uses. Similarly, a user can place a call using Skype.

Individuals with phone contracts that allow them to make free calls to pre-defined numbers (such as "friends & family" plans), can make free VoIP calls from their mobile phones to any country in the world. Those without such mobile calling plans can make international calls at the same rate as a local call.

In summary, users can:

• Forward incoming Skype calls to fixed- or mobile phone
• Make outgoing calls to Skype users
• Make outgoing calls to non-Skype users using SkypeOut
• Make calls abroad without roaming charges

IPdrum currently only supports Windows XP, but the company has plans to support additional operating systems. The product is now available for Nokia and Sony Ericsson base phones. Motorola, Samsung and Siemens are in production.

IPdrum Mobile Skype Cable is available for immediate purchase online through www.ipdrum.com and via select distributors. The product retails for US $70 plus tax.

To date, there have been over 168 million downloads of Skype software.

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