11 May 2008

Millions of mobile users can wave goodbye to hefty bills for international calls thanks to a new service. But how good is it?

A new mobile phone service that allows users to chat with friends in China for the price of calling their local takeaway sounds too good to be true. Last month, however, such an application was launched as a free download available to almost anyone with a modern 3G phone.

It means that cheap international calls are available to millions of phone users – most new mobiles are 3G compatible – and marks a new phase in the battle between internet companies and conventional mobile networks.

The mobile service was launched by Skype, the online communication software provider, and can be downloaded from its website directly to the phone in much the same way as a new ringtone or game would be. It will operate on more than 40 handsets from Motorola, Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericsson and work in countries including the UK, Denmark, Finland, Poland, Sweden and Brazil.