Skype calls on its VoIP business credentials

Database News - Wednesday December 19, 2007

Skype calls on its VoIP business credentials

Service moves beyond cheap telephone calls

DON SAMBANDARAKSA

Skype has come to Thailand to spread the message that it offers a whole catalogue of services that go beyond cheap Voice over IP (VoIP) calls.

In an exclusive interview, Christopher Lewis, Skype's head of business development and marketing for Asia-Pacific, explained that on average 30 percent of people using Skype are business users and noted that it has a number of unique features that are aimed specifically at the SME segment.

For instance, there is a business control panel that allows a small business to manage credit and turn on and off certain features across the company. Another allows the systems administrator to install Skype across a number of machines automatically via a Windows installer package.

Other features that appeal to businesses are already in widespread use in the consumer segment, such as instant messaging, group chats of up to 100 people, file sharing and file transfers.

Skype In offers a local number in many countries for users to call in though a local number. Skype Business Directory is a yellow pages for services.

Skype Prime is an innovative new service that allows users to offer their expertise and knowledge within the Skype community. People call the expert for advice and the expert gets paid from money deducted from the caller's Skype account.

Lewis admitted that Skype is not the cheapest VoIP provider. Skype's global rate to many countries is 1.7 euros a minute while some other VoIP providers go as low as 1.2 euros. However, at this price point Lewis says that half a cent a minute does not make a difference, rather consumers will look towards the other management and security features that Skype offers.

Back in June 2006, Skype was forced by the US FCC to allow US law enforcement agencies to tap and monitor Skype calls if needed. Lewis said that, to date, no country in Asia has made that type of request. "We work with all the regulators, the Ministry of Information and those types of policy makers, but we will not share private data. That is the policy as of today," he said.

When asked how the regulators in Thailand have taken to Skype and VoIP in general, Lewis explained that Skype has no legal presence in Thailand and that there is no law preventing a Thai citizen from going to a Luxembourg-based web site to buy services.

Much of Skype's success is down to its partner ecosystem. On the hardware side, a large number of "certified for Skype" headsets and phones are available, but it is the software side that offers the most promise for the region. Recently Skype held a developer conference in Tokyo and a huge number of small developers with great ideas were present.

Skype has partnered with Hutchinson 3 in Europe, Hong Kong and Australia to launch the X-series of mobile phones pre-loaded with Skype. An X-series phone user can then make Skype to Skype calls via the 3G data network, bypassing the telco. He said he was not worried about telcos locking down their networks as there will always be partners like 3 ready to embrace an open future.

Mobility will be a major factor going forward. Lewis claimed over seven million downloads of the official Windows Mobile client with many more unofficial clients available such as those for Symbian Series 60 and Blackberry.

Bangkok Post