AOL debuts voice conferencing for consumers

America Online on Thursday launched a consumer version of its voice conferencing service.

The AIM Voice Conferencing service incorporates AIM Instant Messenger's "presence" technology, which allows people to see if friends and family are online and available to chat. They can then invite up to 15 people to join a group call. Calls are placed over regular telephone lines using AIM's Buddy List feature, the company said.

The service is powered by Lightbridge's dial-out conferencing technology, which lets toll-free calls be placed directly to participants on either landlines or mobile phones.

After an initial promotion period, the service will cost 15 cents per minute, per user. The minutes have to be purchased in advance in increments of $20, $50 or $100, AOL said. Those receiving the calls on mobile devices may incur charges from their phone service provider.

AOL said invitations to join the conference can be sent through instant messaging to a personal computer, mobile phone or PDA (personal digital assistant) or via recorded voice to any phone, even to those who don't use AIM.

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