Posted on April 19, 2005 by Preston Danforth

Skype recently announced it was launching two new premium services: SkypeIn and Skype Voicemail.

Forbes has the scoop:

Software maker Skype said Friday that it was launching two more premium services as the number of downloads of its popular program neared 100 million.

The company also said it was launching SkypeIn and Skype Voicemail, two premium services available in the latest download versions of Skype software for Linux, MAC OS X, Pocket PC and Windows platforms.

Skype’s signature program lets computer users call each other online for free anywhere in the world.

The new SkypeIn offers users personal numbers and lets them receive inbound calls from the Skype program from land lines or mobile phones without having to pay roaming charges.

Skype Voicemail lets users manage incoming messages.

“Skype is setting new standards for modern communications by expanding premium services that extend Skype portability, mobility and ubiquity across a variety of platforms, including the traditional phone network,” said Niklas Zennstreom, the company’s chief executive and co-founder.

And The Internet Stock Blog’s take:

Voice over IP company Skype announced that its free software had been downloaded 100 million times, and that it was launching two new premium (ie. paid) products: SkypeIn, which offers users personal numbers and lets them receive inbound calls from the Skype program from land lines or mobile phones without having to pay roaming charges, and Skype Voicemail. SkypeIn will cost $13 for three months or $39 for 12-months, and Skype Voicemail $7 for 3 months or $19 for 12 months. Comment: Skype matters to Internet investors for three reasons: (1) VoIP is a killer Internet application; (2) Skype effectively competes with the leading providers of instant messaging software – AOL (owned by Time Warner, ticker: TWX), Yahoo and Microsoft; (3) As communication and personal publishing become tied together, for example with Yahoo 360, instant messaging, video conferencing and VoIP will be an intregral part of the bundle. The upshot? Skype will eventually be acquired by a leading Internet company.

Read more here and here.