Skype Team up with Nokia for Preload

Starting in Q3 this year, the Skype client will come preloaded on the Nokia N97, Nokia's flagship business mobile phone. Announced today by Skype's COO Scott Durchslag and Nokia's Jose Luiz Martinez, VP of Product Management for the N97, Skype plan to introduce the client on the N97 and also other smartphones in the Nokia range, although they are not talking about that today.

Skype have had notable success with their preload cooperation with Hutchison 3, the "Skypephone". According to Josh Silverman, Skype's President:

Quote:

"The Skypephone has a 20% higher ARPU than other Pay-As-You-Go phones at 3."

Sales of the S1,S2 and INQ1 at 3 have topped 500,000 devices, and it is Silverman's argument that "applications drive demand", so the Skypephone is more profitable than comparable PAYG phones, despite the Skype application depriving the operator of traditional voice minutes.

The preloaded Skype for the N97 will be integrated into the address book, and for video calling, Skype will be there as an option. Individual operators will still have the choice to unload Skype and not offer it to their N97 customers.

Reply from dean on Feb 17, 2009 - 09:37 AM

It's not just the fact that Skype are routing something like 8% of the Worlds voice minutes, but also I feel the video calling piece is huge.

Skype, with 35 million users, is in a position where it could completely take the mobile VoIP space.

I believe we're also about to see their iPhone application very shortly...

Reply from satphoneguy on Feb 17, 2009 - 02:24 PM

it will be interesting to see exactly how this will work. will it be a light client(iskoot style) that use circuit switched voice channels? will it work over wifi? will it work over 3G/4G? i hope it supports all three methods.




spg

Reply from dean on Feb 17, 2009 - 03:47 PM

I guess we wait and see how it works (although the 3 Skype Phone uses TDM, neither VoIP nor 3G nor data of any kind).

What is interesting to me is that Skype have integrated to the Nokia address book, making it a complete Active Presence Address Book system, letting you see availability of contacts as well as their details. That for me makes it a big play, and I believe that's why Skype are establishing close relationships with the handset vendors.

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