Today I am back on the road heading up to New England again. I am not such a fan of cold weather so I usually avoid going north when possible this close to winter. Thankfully it seems like we are having very mild weather with a high in the fifties. Lucky me.
And luck is something the VoIP industry is experiencing as Skype recently decided to stop giving away free PC to phone calling in the US and Canada. Pricing is between $15-$30 a year for the service (depending on when you pay) or a flat rat of 2.1 cents per minute.
This small announcement by a single company is enough to perhaps change an industry. Skype – as positive it is for the PR of communications is a cancer in terms of allowing other service providers to prosper. The company has done an amazing job in virtually every way and keeping Skype Out prices free makes it very difficult for other service providers to make money.
So Skype has decided to lose a bit of market share in exchange for revenue. This is great news for everyone. Skype can afford to lose share and apparently they are interested in making lots of money after all.
Now Vonage and a host of other companies have breathing room. Sure Skype is still cheaper but competing with a service which is 1/6 your price is still easier than competing with free. Vonage’s stock has seen a minor gain this week and perhaps this Skype news is the reason. This single bit of news could change the VoIP landscape for years.
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