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News & Updates - Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Vinod Ponies Up For Skype To Mobile's iSkoot

We learned today that Vinod Khosla invested in a Cambridge, MA-based start-up called iSkoot. iSkoot is a pretty weak name in our opinion, but the service is sweet. If you have a Skype account, you can call your buddies on your cell phone via iSkoot. Well its only a matter of time before Skype does this themselves you say. It doesn't look like it as Skype blessed iSkoot to provide this service to mobile operators. Skype has announced its mobile Skype client is the one to be pre-loaded onto the Nokia and Sony Ericsson handsets. The company has a list of eight Patents pending that cover its client server protocol and interfaces, the Mobile-to-Skype gateway and integrated presence system. iSkoot says that its offer attractive to carriers as it still uses regular calling minutes and it has signed up Cingular to back that up. iSkoot also has pre-announced plans to offer the service for Gmail and Yahoo IM services as well. iSkoot downloads are currently free but it has a store that says it will start to charge.... Continue...