He lives in the United States. His fiancee is in Great Britain. He uses an Internet phone service called Skype to keep romance alive and phone bills low.
But there's trouble in paradise. The suitor says his cut-rate phone provider suddenly left him in the lurch, thanks to a billing glitch that's prevented him from using his account to place calls to his betrothed.
"I am sure they will straighten things out in a day or two, but if not, I will simply notify my credit card company to reverse the charge," he wrote in an e-mail to CNET News.com, requesting anonymity.
Among a crowded field of Internet phone providers, Skype has turned heads with its unique blend of technology, grassroots marketing and rapid adoption. Sixty-five million people have downloaded the free software in the 18 months since Skype launched its product. The company is currently signing up about 60,000 new registered users every day--numbers that draw comparisons to free software downloads that swept the Internet during the late 1990s, such as the ICQ instant messaging service. Skype adds an estimated 140,000 new users a day.
News.context
What's new:
Net phone provider Skype has added a commercial product but finds its ad hoc customer service overwhelmed.
Bottom line: Keeping consumers happy could mean dipping into cash reserves to fund customer service.
But the honeymoon may be coming to an end for the upstart phone provider as it branches out of its core free service into new paid offerings.
In recent weeks, there's been a spike in complaints about the company's first commercial service--SkypeOut--that lets customers cheaply make calls off the Internet to ordinary phone lines. Aside from having to wait days for accounts to be credited--as the anonymous suitor and dozens of other customers have complained--many SkypeOut users say their conversations are disrupted by a two-second delay between someone speaking and being able to hear what was said.
"It makes communication impossible," one unsatisfied customer said. Others complain that some calls aren't going through at all, and if they do, you can't hear the other person on the line, though they can hear you. For a few days last week, some people couldn't call U.S. phone numbers.
Skype spokeswoman Kat James acknowledges problems but says the customer numbers tell the bigger story.
"Skype constantly monitors call performance across the global network of users and seeks to enhance quality through continuous product development," James said. "As our growth indicates, we have a huge number of satisfied customers."
Getting what you pay for?
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services, such as Skype's, allow an Internet connection to double as a telephone line. The software makes for dramatically cheaper dialing, mostly because the calls aren't taxed or regulated, but also due to the efficiencies of using the Internet Protocol to ferry the calls, rather than techniques the traditional telephone industry developed decades ago.
Other VoIP providers charge a flat rate of about $25 a month for unlimited domestic calling. Skype is free between callers who both use the company's software. Via SkypeOut, the company will complete calls to ordinary landline and cellular phones, charging about 2 cents a minute to 20 countries in North America, Western Europe and Australia.
Skype's struggles to control what may amount to only minor glitches illustrate the bigger problem of how a low-budget provider handles customer service. Skype has a few hundred employees, but so far, Skype customer service relies mostly on e-mail, proactive customers and patience. James said the company is not in a position to send technicians to inspect individual user setups or Internet connections. "We rely on reports from users to investigate any potential trouble areas," she said.
That's how, for instance, the company learned that Internet connections behind firewalls are not able to use SkypeOut and was able to make people aware of workarounds. Skype lets users vent in free online forums, which are monitored by Skype staff who pass feedback to development and telephone operator partners, James said.
"We read forums to look at generic problems and of course listen to our users' opinions," she said.
Customer service addresses individual issues via e-mail, at billing@skype.com, according to James. "The customer service department is rapidly growing and enhancing the service level for Skype's premium customers," she said.
But that's clearly not enough, say industry insiders, competitors and--judging by the firestorm of protest on the forums--Skype's own customers.
One SkypeOut customer said she'd pay for technical assistance. Another was more to the point about how she bought SkypeOut minutes and felt cheated.
"The money has been debited from my bank account, a reasonable period has passed, and Skype have not met their side of the contract--so as far as I can tell, they've stolen from me," fumed one contributor to Skype Forum, a Skype-run Internet message board. "Further, they advertise Skype as something that will 'just work'--and it categorically doesn't. What a horrendous user experience."
Price of popularity In some way, Skype is victimized by its own success and, at 800,000 customers, it's among the most successful services of its kind ever. Despite its desire to keep spending down, Skype may be forced to eat into its hard-earned revenues to bolster customer service staffs, suggest two industry analysts who report on VoIP providers. But because SkypeOut is Skype's only major source of income, that may be hard on a constrained budget, said one insider at Packet 8, a commercial VoIP provider.
But with subscriber rates high, Skype is pushing forward with other premium services, creating the potential for more awkward customer service crises.
The company is testing a voice mail system, the price of which is not being disclosed, as well as SkypeIn, a complement to SkypeOut in which landline or cell phone callers can call Skype users on Internet-connected devices on which the company's software has been downloaded.
But as Skype gets set to roll out those new services, customers continue to stew over its existing premium service.
"I've been unable to make a call for a week now and have got no response whatsoever from Skype," fumed Skype forum user Moubliepas. "It seems they really don't care about our complaints. We should unite to make our voices heard."
I've been using Skype for months now, though only started using SkypeOut recently. It's the best thing since sliced bread!
As with all developing technologies, there's bound to be problems with emerging services, however I've always seen Skype as being one of the agile organisations out there, and am sure they will get addressed ... eventually.
Unfortunately, it tends to be the people experiencing problems who tend to be most vocal about their experience, so even if they are having problems with 0.01% of their clients, we are bound to hear about it. However, the massive growth rate you report is a testament to the value the service provides to its customer. I think the figures speak for themselves ...
Skype rocks???? Skype is the most unprofessional company I have ever seen. You have to be a Skype EMPLOYEE! I have had technical issues with Skype and wrote them 4 (FOUR) TIMES! They never responded to my e-mails for technical assistance. They are very good at collecting your money however. I am now looking for another VOIP provider. Anyone have a suggestion ?
wait till it happens to you . I never had a issue with them until last week. I had been with them since 2008 and had unlimited world and at the time it came with 3 free online numbers. I this was year three and my credit card expired this past week and we had to change it to the new expiration date. Well in the mean time Skype cancelled my subcription and I was told that I had to get a new skype account. I had my numbers attach to that and had given it to family and friends. I was told that they no longer have the offer I originally had so now I had to pay for each of the numbers I originally had on my old skype account. Oh but they were quick to say my old numbers would be there for
90days and that it would cost my 60.00 dollars for 12months. Come on what a scam. By the way I had to search and search to even get to the live chat. The only way to get there is via their security section. Why cant the have that on their home page so people dont get upset and complain. I am not letting this go and I will write letters and take this further. You will be in a situation one day and say they were all right. Good luck to you
Skype promply credited my account upon payment for Skype-out and I have used the service flawlessly since. Don't know all of the problems but have montiored the message boards only to see that most complaints are "past-tense"
wait till it happens to you . I never had a issue with them until last week. I had been with them since 2008 and had unlimited world and at the time it came with 3 free online numbers. I this was year three and my credit card expired this past week and we had to change it to the new expiration date. Well in the mean time Skype cancelled my subcription and I was told that I had to get a new skype account. I had my numbers attach to that and had given it to family and friends. I was told that they no longer have the offer I originally had so now I had to pay for each of the numbers I originally had on my old skype account. Oh but they were quick to say my old numbers would be there for
90days and that it would cost my 60.00 dollars for 12months. Come on what a scam. By the way I had to search and search to even get to the live chat. The only way to get there is via their security section. Why cant the have that on their home page so people dont get upset and complain. I am not letting this go and I will write letters and take this further. You will be in a situation one day and say they were all right. Good luck to you and hope it never comes up in your time with skype.
I have been using Skype for a few months now. Mainly for VOiP to people with broadband and it is fantastic. I am in Ireland and have phoned my sisters mobile in Australia and there is a delay in these calls which I considered acceptable. My understanding is that the call is going from my system across the internet using Peer-Peer technology to Austalia and is then converted to a 'proper' telephone call which is then routed to a mobile provider to my sisters phone. That's a lot of encoding and decoding.
When I called my friends mobile in the UK it was perfect. The same as a real telephone call and the same as their Broadband to Briadband service.
Tried to purchase credit with my Visa card - no go. I've been using the same card for purchases anywhere on the net without problems for the last 2 years.
Skype offers an alternative payment via Moneybrokers which Skype touts is similar to Paypal. More registration nonsense with them, only to learn that they only accept bank transfers (meaning you have to contact your bank and initiate a transfer - don't forget to gather all of the pertinent info you'll need to do that) to credit an account. No cards accepted, no checks, etc. If you mange to successfully do all of that, then there is a lag time for money to be posted to the account and transfered to Skype. Now in theory, I guess I could do all of that, but in reality I'm not. Too much time, too much trouble, too much ongoing maintenance on my part just to make a phone call.
If they make the service accessible to regular credit card users (at least here in the US) wake me up and I'll give it another whirl.
I had no problems signing up with my VISA card from New Zealand. Maybe you are experiencing the kind of problems that people outside the USA are experiencing. For example the number of times I try to sign up to a program in the USA and the small print tells me : "only for USA or Cannada citizens". The USA economy is not as open as they like to portray to the outside world.
There is a reason why card companies do not like Skype..
I have had credit card fraud hit me twice. The fraud occured on 2 different occassions on 2 different credit cards at two different times. By the way I do not use Skype.
In both cases guess which company showed up in the fradulant charges for buying minutes..
Serious credit card fraud being commited with SKYPE by Skype users. Ask any credit card company. I am 2 for 2.
Skype sould use some decent form of validation in taking credit cards.
I believe the Attractive Nuisance Doctrine should be applied to Skypes legally, like swimming pool fences for small children.
If something on your property is both inviting and dangerous, you have a legal responsibility to try to prevent injuries to children who may wander onto the property. If not you get sued.
Here we are talking about teenagers and some changes to how many attempts some one gets to validate a credit card number.
I am willing to bet there are several thousand folks at this moment who, if they examine their credit card bills closely enough, will notice they have been billed for some Skype minutes by some kid playing the lets commit credit card fraud game thinking there is no way he will get caught. After all it was soooo easy to get his minutes and the card owner will think his wife charged it and let it go.
The process in action as I have heard.. Could be wrong.
1. Kid gets credit card # and name to match, not hard, lists are on the net from clerks and hackers. Kid inputs a name ont the list, trys verification for payment authorization
2. Kid tries verification, wrong one. 3. Kid trys different verification. 4. Kid trys another different verification. 5. Kid trys another different verification. 6. Kid trys another different verification. 7. Kid trys another different verification. 8. Kid wins the prison lottery and verifies. 9. Kid gets minutes using another persons card. 10. Victim contacts card fraud department. 11. Charges dropped, gets card with different #. 12. Card company tracks down kid. 13. Kid gets jail, Skypes gets money.
I sense a bit a jealousy in this article about the phenomenal success of Skype. Skype has worked fantastic for me. At present when people ring me from overseas they ask me to call them back with Skype. Not only is SkypeOut cheaper, but the phone quality is better than from an ordinary phone line ! I have also tried other VOIP services like GnoneMeeting, but it requires a team of network specialists to setup behind my IPCop firewall. Skype works right out of the box, hazzle free, perfect sound quality, very cheap, what do you want more ?
There are always people complaining, no matter how good the product is. They complain even if they are at fault. Personally I can tell nothing but good about Skype. It is cheaper for me to ring my brother in the Netherlands from New Zealand, than it is for him to ring his direct neighbour ! BTW: phone quality is better as well.
I tried the service to make phone calls in the US. They still lack US billing and you need to pay in Euros so I do not think the calling rates are that competitive. Nevertheless, I ran into issues with overloaded circuits and contacted their customer service. It was bad, very bad, online the operator could not provide any assitance. It took 3 weeks to back on forth with their technical support to get an answer. I was not pleased, their customer service is less than acceptable and it seems they would rather bill you than help you.
Hello, I have been using skype for some time now. When I got skypeout to make calls while I travel, I found an issue that I could not call a particular city in India. So I went to skype for help. I got their online chat support and they immediately opend a bug report and said they will have it solved for next release. At that time, they did have a line on their webpage which said that you might have issues with certain area/country codes.
Second most immpressive thing about skype : I was in India on vacation and I had to get on a conference call. I work in the US. I had logged in to the net via a dialup connection. I was surprised when I got a good connection to my bridge and without any issues.
I think Skype is a good company and left to their innovation, we will see more of this company in the future.
Right now the skype is so popular in Europe and other countries.So it leads to a trend of using USB phone to make a free-call via skype. If someone want to find USB Phone from china,you can contact me directly.skype id:nicolehan
I am not one to tell people to stop complaining, but if you pickup a headset to make VOIP calls and expect the call quality to be as if you're standing next to the person you're speaking to, then I think you have more than a phone problem. I work for VOIP provider, it amazes me what kinda expectations people have ("you mean i can't use all the phones in my house!?", of course NOT! *****!). I use SkypeOut, I love it, calls get droped sometimes, sometimes the call quality is pretty bad, but my reaction to all these problems is almost instinctive, I expect it, I have no illusions.
the only problem I have experienced with Skype is the not so rare of late problem with calling landline nubmers. it is my impression that this is an occassional problem seemingly due to the high numbers of recent subscribers. eveyone I know is moving to skype.
despite the problems, the value for money skype offers is extraordinary and incomparable to any other provider known to me.
and you have to take the typically superficial (and underanalysed) cnet reports with a grain of salt. skype's user base has telcos worried and rightly so. the last time they were picking up subscribers at this rate was - hang on - never...
i am sure when skype get big and starts paying for cnet articles, the tune will be different.
but if you are keen to keep paying the greedy telcos the rates they have never been able to justify, go ahead. (I remember moving to the US in 2000 and paying PacBell $125 for my very first 40 or so minute landline call to the UK, just because I had no idea I had to select my long distance provider and naturally, the default was the most expensive option...)
i have a feeling enough of us are willing to support skype through this expansion until they can build up a better infrastrucure. i just hope they don't forget the favour.
in my life my phone line has NEVER been out... but the power and internet is frequently down... (well not that frequent... but frequent relatively), add to the fact that 911 cant trace a VOIP call and other minor problems and you realize...
VOIP is not what its cracked up to be...
btw... VOIP will eventually get viruses and spam phone calls from 3rd world countries trying to rip you off... which the former CANT happen on Phone lines...
yeah phone is more expensive... get a friggin calling card... or dont call during peak hours and its not expensive...
Skype & Skype out FANTASTIC, but, the ISP '@truehisp.co.th' in Thailand (Asianet) block voip services by putting delay or limiting gateway on their hisp servers, therefore Skype useless unless a way around is found.
You have been watching tooo much of the skypes "Sharing is good" movies, which suppose to brain wash user, and they succeeded! p2p in my opinion has nothing to do with sharing my resources and broadband. p2p allows to peers on network to communicate directly, no sharing with others. Tell me, you pay for your house and then share it with others? Stop watching those Skype movies. WAVIGO rules! PEOPLE WAKE UP!!! Skype is using your computer to make $ Read the licensing agreement - all users have to agree before using the program. Part 4: Permission to Utilize, you are giving them permission to use your computer and bandwidth. This is such an example of mass pasychology&just follow the crowd. There is better program I have found , it is free and it is gentle on your computer. It is called WAVIGO!
I got up one morning to find Skype gone without a trace!! Customer Service has not responded in 10 days. On their forum they have trashed me, called me a liar and threatened me all for simply asking for help. Run don't wank from Skype!
I recently signed up for Sypes new unlimited calling for $14.95 yr. It went through okay and I started using the service, then I noticed my Paypal account was charged twice. I tried to contact Skpye to get a refund however I never heard back. I protested it through my account as was immmediately suspended. I've tried numerous times to get a response from support as to how to resolve the issue and all I recieve are emails indicating they will respond in 72 hours which doesn't happen. I was a very happy customer until now. Any suggestions on how to get this situation resolved?
I, too, recently signed up for this service. My Pay-pal was charged, but I never got the service. My Skype account keeps getting debited for my Skype out calls.They have not responded to my emails. Does anyone know an actual phone number for them?
I do not have service from Skype nor do I want to have service from Skype however, they went ahead anyway and deducted funds from my bank account. Until this money was deducted I never heard of nor knew what Skype was or what service they provide. I have contacted them in everyway I can find through email and have called their parent company, Ebay, in San Jose, CA only to be put through to someone's voice mail. Still waiting to hear from them and get my money back. If they keep taking other peoples money they will not have to worry about their bottom line because they will build their company on other peoples backs. This certainly does not look good for Ebay!
I purchased 3 months of Skype Unlimited. They took the money says that it was delivered and still my account says $0.00. Purchased Skype Pro. with 4.50 USD minutes first. That never registered. I have written them several times every way possible. I will not be paying them anything else and will be asking my credit card company to back charge them. They suck.
Three Days on the road of coverig Ike - I'm pissy and I just want a damned answer - so stay tuned b/c I will have someone's @$%$ home phone number in a bit if this keeps up. Their biz payment plan is so damn confusing and I have one VIP running the show there on her time off. ME!!!!
Website fron CNET
BS - Blah blah blah -- but it gets better keep readiing!
Skype is available in 28 languages and is used in almost every country around the world. Skype generates revenue...More»
Skype was founded in 2003 by Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis. Break out your people finders skills and call their butts at home. Be nice - but tell them - Hey you're killing me!
Skype created a little piece of software that makes communicating with people around the world easy and fun. With Skype you can say hello or share a laugh with anyone, anywhere. And if both of you are on Skype, it?s free.
Skype is available in 28 languages and is used in almost every country around the world. Skype generates revenue through its premium offerings such as making and receiving calls to and from landline and mobile phones, as well as voicemail and call forwarding. Skype, based in Luxembourg, has relationships with a growing network of hardware and software providers and is an eBay company (NASDAQ: EBAY).«Less
Here's your physical addy at least. Address: 22/24 Bd. Royal, 6e etage
L-2449
Luxembourg Map it » Founded: 2003
Industry: Communications and Networks
Sub-Industry: VOIP Service/ Equip
Legal Structure: Corporation
Ownership: Subsidiary
Parent Company: ebay Tags: Luxembourg [x] VoIP [x] Ebay [x] IM [x] contact [x] call [x] chat [x] Add a tag
Ok, I am very upset with Skype, I ordered a phone last week , And it state that the rebate voucher will be provided during checkout. I went through the checkout process and when I click on both vouchers all I get is a blank page. I thought maybe they will be included in the package, I receive the package all there was nothing else but the phone, no rebate information, no 3 hr calling voucher information either. I have been trying for 2 days to find a way to contact SKYPE and no luck. When I try to submit my ticket online the submit button will click for me to submit tried over 10 times no luck.
I understand skype is free and I should not expect much from them, but if I spend $159.99 plus $14.78 for shipping, I expect someone to answer my questions about the product I bought. It was not free, and if I cannot contact anyone to find out about all the offer included in the package, then that?s cheating and false advertisement.
Below is a copy of the phone offer information. If anyone have information on how I can contact skype please help me.
Netgear WiFi Phone
NETGEAR?s WiFi Phone (SPH200W-100NAS) with Skype lets you make and receive Skype calls wherever you have WiFi access without a PC and with no monthly fees.
Includes a 3-hour calling voucher to phones.*
$30.00 mail-in-rebate!
Mail-in-rebate is valid until March 31st, 2009 (form is provided during checkout)
I just purchased unlimited credit for Europe for one month .I got the credit delivered and the next minute the credit was gone trying ever thing to contact skype but cant find the way.It seem like I have to buy more credit
I purchased 3 months of Skype Unlimited back in Dec '09. They took the money but I got no service.. I have been chasing up to either get a refund or the service I paid for for the last 6 months, writing them emails and providing them with all the information they needed but I keep receiving the same type of email from them requesting the same information which I have provided to them a number of times already. I paid by bank transfer and they are requesting another proof of payment than a copy of my bank statement....??? Their customer service is ridiculous, and the fact that you can't talk to their department on the phone does not help. They suck.
I have had issue with Skype and was searching for a place that I could speak to a person. Like everyone I soon discovered that there was none. I didint want to leave things like that, so I said there has to be a way. I went into the security section of Skype. Next I type in credit card (as my issue). The next screen will be how to resolve issue. Ignore that and look to your right hand side where it says Related. Click on get more help. You are almost there. Type in your skype name and password. You are there and you will now be given two options one being live chat. Click on live chat. They will try to help with your your issue now. Good luck because I did not get any help what I did get was abuse by the online chat staff . I did a screen shot because I will take this further now. I think skype is great at taking your money but their customer service is poor. I think we should all keep bugging them until they
get humans who can answer your queries with satisfaction. It's not like they have to pay for calling us anyways. I will try to keep you posted on this issue. I am in the process of searching for a address for the head of accounting department and then we can write and write until they do something for their customers.
This is a 5 times happing with me they chearge me direct from my credit card and i don't see the minutes increase in my account, it is verrry hard to speak with them and about the email it is garbage .
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Keeping consumers happy could mean dipping into cash reserves to fund customer service.
As with all developing technologies, there's bound to be problems with emerging services, however I've always seen Skype as being one of the agile organisations out there, and am sure they will get addressed ... eventually.
Unfortunately, it tends to be the people experiencing problems who tend to be most vocal about their experience, so even if they are having problems with 0.01% of their clients, we are bound to hear about it. However, the massive growth rate you report is a testament to the value the service provides to its customer. I think the figures speak for themselves ...
Skype is the most unprofessional company I have ever seen.
You have to be a Skype EMPLOYEE!
I have had technical issues with Skype and wrote them 4 (FOUR) TIMES! They never responded to my e-mails for technical assistance. They are very good at collecting your money however.
I am now looking for another VOIP provider. Anyone have a suggestion ?
90days and that it would cost my 60.00 dollars for 12months. Come on what a scam. By the way I had to search and search to even get to the live chat. The only way to get there is via their security section. Why cant the have that on their home page so people dont get upset and complain. I am not letting this go and I will write letters and take this further. You will be in a situation one day and say they were all right. Good luck to you
90days and that it would cost my 60.00 dollars for 12months. Come on what a scam. By the way I had to search and search to even get to the live chat. The only way to get there is via their security section. Why cant the have that on their home page so people dont get upset and complain. I am not letting this go and I will write letters and take this further. You will be in a situation one day and say they were all right. Good luck to you and hope it never comes up in your time with skype.
Mainly for VOiP to people with broadband and it is fantastic.
I am in Ireland and have phoned my sisters mobile in Australia and there is a delay in these calls which I considered acceptable. My understanding is that the call is going from my system across the internet using Peer-Peer technology to Austalia and is then converted to a 'proper' telephone call which is then routed to a mobile provider to my sisters phone. That's a lot of encoding and decoding.
When I called my friends mobile in the UK it was perfect. The same as a real telephone call and the same as their Broadband to Briadband service.
I'm sticking with it.
using the same card for purchases anywhere on the net without
problems for the last 2 years.
Skype offers an alternative payment via Moneybrokers which
Skype touts is similar to Paypal. More registration nonsense with
them, only to learn that they only accept bank transfers
(meaning you have to contact your bank and initiate a transfer -
don't forget to gather all of the pertinent info you'll need to do
that) to credit an account. No cards accepted, no checks, etc. If
you mange to successfully do all of that, then there is a lag time
for money to be posted to the account and transfered to Skype.
Now in theory, I guess I could do all of that, but in reality I'm
not. Too much time, too much trouble, too much ongoing
maintenance on my part just to make a phone call.
If they make the service accessible to regular credit card users
(at least here in the US) wake me up and I'll give it another whirl.
from New Zealand.
Maybe you are experiencing the kind of problems
that people outside the USA are experiencing.
For example the number of times I try to sign up
to a program in the USA and the small print
tells me : "only for USA or Cannada citizens".
The USA economy is not as open as they like to
portray to the outside world.
In both cases guess which company showed up in the fradulant charges for buying minutes..
Serious credit card fraud being commited with SKYPE by Skype users. Ask any credit card company. I am 2 for 2.
Skype sould use some decent form of validation in taking credit cards.
I believe the Attractive Nuisance Doctrine should be applied to Skypes legally, like swimming pool fences for small children.
If something on your property is both inviting and dangerous, you have a legal responsibility to try to prevent injuries to children who may wander onto the property. If not you get sued.
Here we are talking about teenagers and some changes to how many attempts some one gets to validate a credit card number.
I am willing to bet there are several thousand folks at this moment who, if they examine their credit card bills closely enough, will notice they have been billed for some Skype minutes by some kid playing the lets commit credit card fraud game thinking there is no way he will get caught. After all it was soooo easy to get his minutes and the card owner will think his wife charged it and let it go.
The process in action as I have heard.. Could be wrong.
1. Kid gets credit card # and name to match, not hard, lists are on the net from clerks and hackers. Kid inputs a name ont the list, trys verification for payment authorization
2. Kid tries verification, wrong one.
3. Kid trys different verification.
4. Kid trys another different verification.
5. Kid trys another different verification.
6. Kid trys another different verification.
7. Kid trys another different verification.
8. Kid wins the prison lottery and verifies.
9. Kid gets minutes using another persons card.
10. Victim contacts card fraud department.
11. Charges dropped, gets card with different #.
12. Card company tracks down kid.
13. Kid gets jail, Skypes gets money.
Look in Skype forums for more.
the phenomenal success of Skype.
Skype has worked fantastic for me.
At present when people ring me from overseas
they ask me to call them back with Skype.
Not only is SkypeOut cheaper, but the phone
quality is better than from an ordinary phone
line !
I have also tried other VOIP services like
GnoneMeeting, but it requires a team of network
specialists to setup behind my IPCop firewall.
Skype works right out of the box, hazzle free,
perfect sound quality, very cheap, what do you
want more ?
how good the product is.
They complain even if they are at fault.
Personally I can tell nothing but good about
Skype.
It is cheaper for me to ring my brother in the
Netherlands from New Zealand, than it is for him
to ring his direct neighbour !
BTW: phone quality is better as well.
US billing and you need to pay in Euros so I do not think the
calling rates are that competitive. Nevertheless, I ran into issues
with overloaded circuits and contacted their customer service. It
was bad, very bad, online the operator could not provide any
assitance. It took 3 weeks to back on forth with their technical
support to get an answer. I was not pleased, their customer
service is less than acceptable and it seems they would rather
bill you than help you.
I have been using skype for some time now. When I got skypeout to make calls while I travel, I found an issue that I could not call a particular city in India. So I went to skype for help. I got their online chat support and they immediately opend a bug report and said they will have it solved for next release. At that time, they did have a line on their webpage which said that you might have issues with certain area/country codes.
Second most immpressive thing about skype : I was in India on vacation and I had to get on a conference call. I work in the US. I had logged in to the net via a dialup connection. I was surprised when I got a good connection to my bridge and without any issues.
I think Skype is a good company and left to their innovation, we will see more of this company in the future.
With WiMax, skype will have even more customers.
These are my views and expereinces.
-GGR
If someone want to find USB Phone from china,you can contact me directly.skype id:nicolehan
what a joke
despite the problems, the value for money skype offers is extraordinary and incomparable to any other provider known to me.
and you have to take the typically superficial (and underanalysed) cnet reports with a grain of salt. skype's user base has telcos worried and rightly so. the last time they were picking up subscribers at this rate was - hang on - never...
i am sure when skype get big and starts paying for cnet articles, the tune will be different.
but if you are keen to keep paying the greedy telcos the rates they have never been able to justify, go ahead. (I remember moving to the US in 2000 and paying PacBell $125 for my very first 40 or so minute landline call to the UK, just because I had no idea I had to select my long distance provider and naturally, the default was the most expensive option...)
i have a feeling enough of us are willing to support skype through this expansion until they can build up a better infrastrucure. i just hope they don't forget the favour.
VOIP is not what its cracked up to be...
btw... VOIP will eventually get viruses and spam phone calls from 3rd world countries trying to rip you off... which the former CANT happen on Phone lines...
yeah phone is more expensive... get a friggin calling card... or dont call during peak hours and its not expensive...
doesn't cost us a cent as we use cpu to cpu... It's FREE why
gripe.
Does anyone know an actual phone number for them?
says that it was delivered and still my account says $0.00.
Purchased Skype Pro. with 4.50 USD minutes first. That never
registered. I have written them several times every way possible. I
will not be paying them anything else and will be asking my credit
card company to back charge them. They suck.
Website fron CNET
BS - Blah blah blah -- but it gets better keep readiing!
Skype is available in 28 languages and is used in almost every country around the world. Skype generates revenue...More»
Skype was founded in 2003 by Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis. Break out your people finders skills and call their butts at home. Be nice - but tell them - Hey you're killing me!
Skype created a little piece of software that makes communicating with people around the world easy and fun. With Skype you can say hello or share a laugh with anyone, anywhere. And if both of you are on Skype, it?s free.
Skype is available in 28 languages and is used in almost every country around the world. Skype generates revenue through its premium offerings such as making and receiving calls to and from landline and mobile phones, as well as voicemail and call forwarding. Skype, based in Luxembourg, has relationships with a growing network of hardware and software providers and is an eBay company (NASDAQ: EBAY).«Less
Here's your physical addy at least.
Address:
22/24 Bd. Royal, 6e etage
L-2449
Luxembourg
Map it » Founded:
2003
Industry:
Communications and Networks
Sub-Industry:
VOIP Service/ Equip
Legal Structure:
Corporation
Ownership:
Subsidiary
Parent Company:
ebay
Tags:
Luxembourg [x]
VoIP [x]
Ebay [x]
IM [x]
contact [x]
call [x]
chat [x]
Add a tag
I understand skype is free and I should not expect much from them, but if I spend $159.99 plus $14.78 for shipping, I expect someone to answer my questions about the product I bought. It was not free, and if I cannot contact anyone to find out about all the offer included in the package, then that?s cheating and false advertisement.
Below is a copy of the phone offer information. If anyone have information on how I can contact skype please help me.
Netgear WiFi Phone
NETGEAR?s WiFi Phone (SPH200W-100NAS) with Skype lets you make and receive Skype calls wherever you have WiFi access without a PC and with no monthly fees.
Includes a 3-hour calling voucher to phones.*
$30.00 mail-in-rebate!
Mail-in-rebate is valid until March 31st, 2009 (form is provided during checkout)
$169.99
$159.99
I have been chasing up to either get a refund or the service I paid for for the last 6 months, writing them emails and providing them with all the information they needed but I keep receiving the same type of email from them requesting the same information which I have provided to them a number of times already. I paid by bank transfer and they are requesting another proof of payment than a copy of my bank statement....???
Their customer service is ridiculous, and the fact that you can't talk to their department on the phone does not help. They suck.
get humans who can answer your queries with satisfaction. It's not like they have to pay for calling us anyways. I will try to keep you posted on this issue. I am in the process of searching for a address for the head of accounting department and then we can write and write until they do something for their customers.