Skype announced today that all French-based Skype‚Äö?묢 users can make unlimited SkypeOut‚Äö?묢 calls to landlines in France for free. This offer is valid in France from 7 September to 31 December 2006. Previously, French-based Skype users were required to pay for all SkypeOut calls from their PCs to traditional landlines. Skype is offering all French-based people the chance to call Skype announced today that all French-based Skype‚Äö?묢 users can make unlimited SkypeOut‚Äö?묢 calls to landlines in France for free. This offer is valid in France from 7 September to 31 December 2006. Previously, French-based Skype users were required to pay for all SkypeOut calls from their PCs to traditional landlines. Skype is offering all French-based people the chance to call their friends and family on landlines in France, for free. Calls from one Skype software account to another across the world, remain completely free.
Skype anticipates that free calling to all landlines in France will expand Skype’s increasing penetration into the French market. “At Skype, we remain faithful to our desire to innovate and revolutionise the world of communications” said Jerome Archambeaud, French Market Development Manager for Skype.”
French consumers will have the opportunity to make free, unlimited calls to landline phones across the entire French population ‚Äö?Ñ?¨ that’s a total of 60 million people. All you need is broadband connection and a Skype account. ” After the huge success of a similar initiative for Skype users based in North America in May this year, France is the first European country where Skype has launched free internet calling. There are over 113 million Skype users today and when coupled with the soaring growth of worldwide broadband penetration which has reached 62% (Source: Ipsos-Insight) internet calling is rapidly becoming the communications medium of choice.
Aside from making free calls to all landlines in France, SkypeOut remains unchanged to French-based Skype users who can purchase credit to call mobiles and international phone numbers at very competitive rates. Skype is accessible through any of the following platforms: PC, Mac, Pocket PC, Linux, and the new WiFi and DECT phones.
[Text above from the press release; click here for full text]
This Skype announcement will be a big hit in France. In this country, Internet users have been used to free calls for a long time. In Fact, those who have a DSL access with the internet access provider named Free have been enjoying this feature for more than 3 years now, through their regular phone set. Recently, Free, in its unbundled offering for triple play (TV + free phone for all fixed lines in France +High speed Internet access for 30 euros a month) allows its users to get rid of their original phone line which was typically provided by France T?©l?©com (the incumbent in France) for 15 euros a month. In this case, their subscription to the necessary phone line to get DSL is now given at no cost. For 30 euros, they have a 4 to 8 Mbps access to the net, about 80 TV chanels and free calls to any fixed line in France as well as free calls to about 20 foreign countries in Europe and in the US and Canada.
There is also Neuf Cegetel and other french providers that include a VoIP option.
Neuf Cegetel even include a phone (“Twin”) for 200 euros which enables VoIP Wi-Fi calls on every Neuf Cegetel box, in main french train stations and other public places.
Skype is offering french fixed line calls until Xmas 2006, but what next ?