Microsoft officially announced it has chosen Telefonica, the largest telecommunications provider in Latin America, to distribute its Microsoft Live Messenger VoIP client in seven South American countries. Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Columbia, Peru and Venezuela will now have access to the PC -based phone service, called Voype, which was announced [1] for U.S. users Oct. 3.
The Voype service is priced under Skype's rates; $0.014 a minute for Voype calls to the U.S. compared to $0.021 for Skype. Skype's clear advantage is the ability to answer calls on SkypeIn, as Telefonica said that feature will not be available until a later release date.
Telefonica also plans an eventual rollout in Latin America.
For more:
- see the CNET blog post here [2]
Related articles
Microsoft Live Messenger VoIP arrives (again) [1]
SPOTLIGHT: Microsoft messenger for Mac muffed [3]
Links:
[1] http://www.fiercevoip.com/story/microsoft-live-messenger-voip-again/2008-10-03
[2] http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10074547-2.html?tag=newsLatestHeadlinesArea.0
[3] http://www.fiercevoip.com/story/spotlight-microsoft-messenger-for-mac-muffed/2008-05-05