Skype will help its users sell and buy information and services. They are starting small with ringtones. And that's fine. This sets up the business relationships with music labels, shopping services on Skype and partner sites, accounting and billing, reporting and feedback systems. It's a chance to learn and experiment on the cheap, to become wise in the ways of helping Skypers play and shop.

Later comes selling entire songs for downloading, like Apple's iTunes. And podcasts, vlogs, videos, games.

And after that: helping Skypers trade or sell their bits to each other. My old Madonna ringtone for $.10, including the licence key and registered DRM transfer; Skype getting a penny. My mashup of samples of rat pack era songs and Italian specialty numbers to tailor your Skype client for the last season of the Sopranos.

Skype is attractive for more than its millions of active users. It's an economic magnet because users organize themselves along social networks, propagate ideas, and share information through those networks. It's one thing for people to cluster around a "place" like an Elvis memorabilia forum on eBay. It's another for you to have them on speed dial, to see their presence and moods, and to otherwise be more immediately engaged in their lives, and they in yours. I am more likely to learn of the eBay Madonna fan boards on eBay from someone I know than serendipitious discovery.

Today's Skype "ringtones" are overpriced because this is still the PC market, not the mobile market. iTunes sets the bar at $0.99 for a whole song from a nearly infinite playlist. The Warner Music deal says $1.50 for ring tones, but competitive pressure will drive those rates down. Since PCs offer many more touchpoints and contexts to sonify user experience, Skype users may see offerings for entire sound "themes" licensed directly or remixed.

The Skypenomics takeaway:

1. Ringtones teach Skype and Skypers about buying and selling, building trust.
2. Next step: buy Coldplay tracks and download them through the secure Skype file transfer, Skype getting a royalty.
3. Step after: sell my Coldplay track to my friends, Skype getting a cut.

Phil's facts on Skype for ETel. Skype was on everyone's lips at ETel and yet many knew little about it. "Closed" was an anathema to many in the audience.

(Note, this was recorded on my iPod with iTalk, it is not meant to be IT Conversations. In a few weeks I'm sure many of these will be available there)