At last week's 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, several big names in the communications sector, including Microsoft (Profile, Products, Articles), Nokia (Profile, Products, Articles), and Skype Technologies (Profile, Products, Articles), announced mobile phone-based VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol) products and services that could radically change how cellular customers use their handsets in the future.
European 3G (third-generation) operator Hutchison 3 Group (Hutchison 3G), a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa, announced a partnership to provide what could become the world's first commercial VoIP service for mobile phones.
"We don't view VoIP as something that will cannibalize our voice business; users will have to pay a fee for access," said Christian Salbaing, managing director of European Telecommunications at Hutchison 3G. "We view VoIP as a way to create greater customer choice and expect the service to increase their usage."
thro' infoworld