Windows Phone Thoughts: Skype Hype Machine Keeps on Rollin'

In this particular case, there's actually a bit more than hype, as Skype truly seems to be making big inroads into established telecommunication and hardware channels. To recap, Skype has signed deals with Carrier Devices, Motorola, HTC and Siemens AG. And a boatload of others that I can't remember at the moment. ;) IDG News Service interviewed Niklas Zennström, CEO of Skype and he revealed a few interesting tidbits that are worth sharing:

"IDGNS: Your service appears to be growing strongly. What are your numbers?
Zennström: Skype is growing extremely rapidly: We have 29 million users and are adding 155,000 users each day. Most of them run the software on their computers, but we also have around 1.3 million Pocket PC users.
IDGNS: Skype has attracted numerous users because it's free. But last year, you launched a new service, called SkypeOut, that allows users to pay for VOIP calls terminating in the public telephone network. How's that service doing?
Zennström: We now have around 1 million customers for this service. They pay €0.017 (US$0.023 ) to call to any landline in 20 countries. We're also working on a logical counterpart: SkypeIn, which accepts calls from the public telephone network.
IDGNS: You're working to let Skype users send and receive SMS (Short Message Service) text messages. What else can we expect?
Zennström: Let's wait and see. In October, we released an API (application programming interface). Software developers can develop a lot of other applications with this API. One company, for instance, has developed an SMS gateway for Skype users to both send and receive text messages. Another company has developed an answering service. So we're starting to see more and more companies develop applications around this API."

It's a fairly interesting exchange, and definitely worth checking out if you're interested in Skype or VoIP.