Comments on: Skype's mobile dreams

While it makes sense for Skype to be on mobile phones, it may be years before the free peer-to-peer software makes its way into the mobile market in a big way.

[chonnom]

what a larf

It would be nice if they perfected their PC software first. Starting from about 6 months ago, I became unable to call cell-phones in Japan. After repeated tech-support e-mails, I got this little gem; "Skype currently does not support calls to Japanese mobile phones" to which I responded that until shortly before they did....no answer.

[timkilroy]

Not Much To See Here

http://www.mobileambition.com
So, really, what is the big to-do here? I'm down with Skype. The service is cool. The technology is cool too. But, truly, truly, truly when is the last time you thought about the cost of making a long distance phone call? Domestic calls are virtually free (or, really, the cost is disguised) and international calls are plummeting in cost. (Although roaming calls and international long distance are still a huge profit center for the mobile industry.)Mobile Skype doesn't relieve you of any burdens. While you are traveling, you must either be paying roaming data rates, or be using a data plan. If you are using just Wifi, then it really isn't mobile, but rather portable...Mobile Skype may be cheaper than using voice minutes, but you give up the reliability of carrier voice connections. If you are traveling abroad, you will likely be using Wifi and a PC will be just as good an option.No real story here, although the VOIP guys want you to think there is. (As a disclaimer, I love VOIP. My home phone is VOIP, my office phone is VOIP, but they are relacements for traditional services, whereas mobile Skype will be an add-on service on top of your usual monthly voice/data plan fee).If we can get true mobile service without a carrier agreement, then that would be a story.

[manheru01]

mobile voip

i heard recently that there is a british company called vicci which seems to have a revolutionary mobile voip product on the way, wondered if anyone else has heard about it?

[Lets Succeed]

What's News...

I totally agree! A new plan, on top of a plan, especially when they come only with two-year agreements (or the likes) is NO DEAL. I too use VOIP in my home and office (not thru Skype) via my pre-existing telephones which are portable but not truly mobile. With the capability to transport my DTA box anywhere in the world and plug it into any internet and any pre-existing telephone and make calls to any mobile, land line or voip phone, as well as receive incoming calls when someone dials my home or office number (no matter where in the world I am) for no additional charges; THIS is still more news worthy and impressive, in my opinion.

[Stating]

Your Own Custom PBX

Skype has an opportunity to expand the service to support customizable PBX-like functions like find-me-follow-me, greetings based on caller-id, call actions based on time-of-day, etc. The API could expose new functionality, allowing independent software companies and handset makers to exploit the functioanality.

I have a makehift find-me by forwarding unanswered Skype calls to me cell phone, but it doesn't have the kind of flexibility I really want. It's cool though, an incoming call rings all my Skype phones wherever they may be -- home, work, etc. If I'm in the field then it rings through to the cell.

[hadaso]

The problem with mobile carriers is ...

The problem with mobile carriers is that they are providing and controlling both the pipes and the content going over them.

With the internet it's different. ISPs provide the pipes. Generally any IP protocol traffic can get through. So it's a good environment for developing applications. They only have to adhere to the standards to work.

With mobile providers it's different. They just have to limit anything that go over their networks. There is little sense in developing applications for this environment unless you are very big and you can secure in advance agreements that your applications would actually not be blocked. A lot of the development you can have on the internet you just cannot have in this environment. It's focused on providing one size fits all things for the lowest common denominator of audiences.

There is also little sense in buying mobile based technology unless you know you absolutely need it or you have lots of spare money when you know that the limitations are not just technology but also artificial limitations your provider puts on applications you can use just so you cannot use the resources efficiently (that is forcing you to use the resources less efficiently to do what you need to do so they can charge more).

There's a conflict of interest between the selling of connectivity and the selling of content (particular services) and as long as no regulation separates these two and opening mobile networks by requiring that they allow all kinds of data that adhere to basic communications standards (like ISPs allow any protocol over IP protocol) we cannot expect these networks to develop in the same way the internet does, and a ten word SMS message would cost the same as sending an email message with a million times more data on the internet.

[emerson direct]

tip of the iceberg

This is merely a precursor for what will eventually be a world where we all carry a laptop the size of a cellphone. It will have all of the functionality and be twice as fast. It's coming.