Skype and Nokia today jointly announced the release of Skype for Symbian, a Skype client for Nokia smartphones based on the Symbian platform, the world’s most popular smartphone platform.
Skype for Symbian will allow Nokia smartphone users worldwide to use Skype on the move, over either a WiFi or mobile data connection (GPRS, EDGE, 3G). It is now downloadable for free from the Ovi Store, Nokia’s one-stop shop for mobile content.
Skype for Symbian enables Nokia smartphone users to:
Make free Skype-to-Skype calls to other Skype users anywhere in the world*
- Save money on calls and texts (SMS) to phones abroad
- Send and receive instant messages to and from individuals or groups
- Share pictures, videos and other files
- Receive calls to their existing online number
- See when Skype contacts are online and available to call or IM
- Easily import names and numbers from the phone’s address book
The world’s largest device manufacturer said it will run on any Nokia smartphone using Symbian ^1, the latest version of the Symbian platform.
“We’re seeing around 1.5 million downloads a day on Ovi Store now and believe that the Skype client for Nokia smartphones will have wide appeal to Symbian users,” said Jo Harlow, senior VP for smartphones at Nokia. Skype plans to soon introduce the client to Symbian mobile devices from other manufacturers, including Sony Ericsson.
Last week Skype announced it is pulling Skype for Windows Mobile phones and Skype Lite for Java handsets, including Android. The download pages for Windows Mobile and Java have been removed from Skype’s site, although existing users will not lose functionality for either Skype for Windows Mobile or Skype Lite. On the iPhone, calling is still limited to Wi-Fi and on Google Android it’s even more complicated, routing phone calls through traditional phone networks.
According to Google’s Andy Rubin, “While the first generation of our Android software did not support full-featured VoIP applications due to technology limitations, we have worked through those limitations in subsequent versions of Android, and developers are now able to build and upload VoIP services”. “Neither of these apps originally offered a great Skype experience,” Skype said in a blog post.
At last month’s GSMA Mobile World Congress Skype announced a partnership with Verizon Wireless, the largest US operator. Verizon customers with data service plans will be able to use the Internet telephony service on Skype Mobile runs on nine different Verizon smart phones.
Skype’s VoIP client has also been embedded on smartphones from Nokia as well as UK operator 3’s Skypephone. In the U.S., Nokia has a small market share, but today’s announcement is a big deal for carriers internationally, where Nokia handsets dominate. Placing it on the Ovi Store also makes it an easy (free) download.
Since the client uses a mobile data connection, Skype recommends the use of an unlimited data plan. Phone calls, on average, use between 8K bps (bits per second) and 20K bps. Cell phone operators have apparently determined that encouraging users to sign up for $30/month data plans is worth the loss in revenue from traditional mobile voice services.
Symbian has been shipped in more than 330 million devices worldwide. In 2008, Nokia, one of Symbian’s largest customers, acquired a major share in the company. Nokia then created the Symbian Foundation to distribute the platform as an open source project, and began the process of opening up the source code that year.
Linux World lists Five Benefits of an Open Source Symbian.
IDC says in 2009, vendors shipped a total of 174.2 million smartphones. That’s up 15.1% from the 151.4 million units in 2008, and accounts for 15.4% of all mobile phones.
Walt like MagicJack. The small $40 adapter for your computer that claims to let you make unlimited domestic phone calls over the Internet with your home telephone free for a whole year—and for just $20 a year thereafter.
In-Stat projects 288 million Voice-over-Internet Protocol users by 2013.
