CEO: No Timetable for Mobile Skype

By the Betanews Staff | Published September 28, 2006, 2:36 PM

A version of Skype made for mobile phones and networks is far from complete due to a lack of compatible handsets and technical issues, its CEO said. The world's largest messaging network had originally intended to have the service available on Nokia phones last year. "We have no publicly available products yet to offer and I can't give you a timetable," chief executive and co-founder Niklas Zennstrom told the Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat, according to a translation by Reuters.

"It is challenging and is taking much longer than expected," he continued. While the company does have a version for Windows Mobile in Europe, it is not commonly downloaded. Also in the interview, Zennstrom acknowledged that some mobile operators saw the company as a threat, but added Skype was looking into ways to work together with them on new services.

Comments

View comments by with a score of at least

Its a bit missleading topic of article as windows mobile phones run skype ok (best with processors above200mhz)... Article is about No Timetable for symbian phones!
IMHO it is very connected also to NOKIA which always tries to play nice with mobile operators as it showed with its own IM for mobiles which gave ability operators to control and optionally charge for such messaging. That attempt failed.
Please mobile operators.. get real, simplify life to everybody ... you are just data provider. You can do more by offering additional quality insurance/service/support for some data services but dont try to control/force what data services customer is using.

Score: 0

|

Yeah. This statement is completely untrue:
"While the company does have a version for Windows Mobile in Europe, it is not commonly downloaded."

Skype for Pocket PC has been available for download worldwide for some time now. Here: http://www.skype.com/download/skype/mobile/

Score: 0

|

I have tried Skype on my Windows Mobile Phone (over wifi). Good stuff.

Score: 0

|

You know the mobile fone companies are not going to want their VERY LUCRATIVE monthly fee$ to go away anytime soon!

Doug

Score: 0

|

Google Chrome 4: Yes, it's fast, but is it usable?

As Betanews readers have responded to our stories about Chrome's JavaScript superiority...Does that mean we'd actually use this browser? Well...

Video: Netflix on PlayStation 3

Netflix has come to the PlayStation 3 via Blu-ray and BD-Live.

Verizon Wireless launches new Android, Chocolate, and ruggedized phones

The lower-priced Eris joins the Droid, while the Chocolate gets a touchscreen and more music playback.

Early sales figures for Windows 7 nicely high, but do we know why?

Fans of triple-digit surges in figures quoted by Betanews will love this one, as it appears Microsoft rediscovered how to pull off a software launch.

Myka announces its latest Linux-based 'net top box'

Myka's ION brings Boxee, XMBC, and much more to HDTVs.

What hath Mac wrought? A remembrance after a quarter-century

The reason there's a Macintosh today is not because of some brilliant flash of engineering genius, but because Apple had the audacity to learn from its mistakes.

Early build of Moblin 2.1 improves connectivity, but not device support

The Linux Foundation's Atom-centric OS yesterday received a major overhaul with the project release of Moblin 2.1 for netbooks and nettops.

The iPhone's China syndrome: Sales of 5,000 and climbing

There's actually a country where Apple's device is not a godsend, where sales can be measured in the dozens.

New European counterpart to FCC will ensure 'a more neutral net'

Late Thursday night, the ruling telecom administrators of the EU's member nations signed away their final authority to a new entity overseen by the EC.

Sophos study suggests Windows 7 UAC's default setting is self-defeating

Without any anti-virus installed, a Sophos test showed, User Account Control was only capable of thwarting just one malware package out of ten samples chosen.

Indiscreet tweet trips awareness of Web SSL vulnerability

A group of high-level security engineers had been making progress on thwarting a low-level threat to the Web, until somebody blurted it all out on Twitter.