Yahoo's new Messenger head talks about where they are going. Best quotable quote. There are more people in the US still using rotary dial phones than there are Vonage customers.

(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)

Vonage is launching a Wi-Fi phone so you can now use your Vonage account anywhere you can find a Wi-Fi connection. There's a $50 rebate on it... for a price of $79.99 and a minimum 3 month contract. There will be an early cancellation fee too. This is a substantial price break from the retail price I see elsewhere for the UTStarcom F1000. It almost suggests they are dumping it on unsuspecting consumers. Engadget described this as for the hard core only. Still it's a new market and the features you will be getting soon on these Wi-Fi phones will push the mobile operators. The Starcom can be purchased as a stand alone Vonage solution. Thus you no longer need an ATA / Vonage box to participate. Will Vonage offer a Softphone next for free?

The UTStarcom F1000 Wi-Fi Phone is a pocket-sized, wireless Internet phone that uses Vonage service by connecting to wireless Internet access points worldwide, also known as Wi-Fi hotspots. It's an easy way to bring your Vonage service anywhere. Vonage - The Broadband Phone Company

I presume the Starcom is locked to Vonage although I can't be sure. I doubt you can just buy it from Vonage and transfer it to another SIP provider at a later date. I'm tempted to try one. I'd like to hook it up to the PhoneGnome I'm using currently.

My Vonage experience came to an unpleasant ending today. I've been a Vonage customer since February 2004. Over time it just became less and less relevant. It neither provided the cost savings or the enhanced services that would really change the way I communicate. I was never willing to pay for a softphone that should have been free, etc. I've long wondered about how long the PoIP players have and think the outlook for Vonage and its clones is grim. Note Vonage was a second / business line for me when I began using the service. It was not a home PSTN / landline replacement.

As I cancelled my account the very rude Vonage operator (second one, first call was droppped) said there would be a disconnect fee of $41.99. I asked why and what was that for. Maybe he took offence to my honest answer. "Why are you leaving Vonage?" I don't need it anymore, I've replaced it with Skype and Phonegnome. He told me it was the cost of closing the account and in the terms. I asked him to show me the terms. He pointed me to the following:

3.6 Termination Fee (Does Not Apply to Business Plus Customers). You will be charged a termination fee of $39.99 per voice line if your Service is terminated for any reason during the first twelve months following the activation of your Service. Vonage Terms

I then pointed out that I had been a customer longer than 12 months. He then credited my account for the 41.99 he had already charged. So in the end cancelation cost of 0. I was just left feeling and wondering how many Vonage Customers who are exiting get stiffed for the $41.99. My bet is he is paid a commission on it. In any case it stinks of bad business practices behind the scenes. Probably an opportunity for a class action suit for some lawyer.

Why did I cancel. For awhile Vonage was my main business line. It could never be more they couldn't offer me or transfer my PSTN home number. It was more reliable than Skype at first, and the rates were better than my landline. Still in the end Skype wins. I've been using SkypeIn as my business line (and call forward to my cell) for months and I'd just concluded that I didn't need the backup anymore. At home almost all traditional international calls now go out on SkypeOut and if not that way they are handled by Inphonex my prepaid account on Phonegnome. Not quite as cheap as Skype. I now have the best of both worlds. Prepaid calling plans and a toll bar on my PSTN account. It could be all made better --- then that is another post.

Skype $3 billion dollar sellout? Is there a real story here? Robert X. Cringely adds to the rumor mill by reporting that Skype was almost sold last week for $3 billion to Rupert Murdoch who just bought MySpace for an extraordinary sum. Was that the reason for Tim's exuberant chatter at AlwaysOn?

Some facts and figures in this piece are clearly wrong to Skype watchers. Some numbers, e.g. the value of the "customers," suggest a possible valuation method. I do agree with part of his conclusion that Skype should partner with an independent mobile carrier. (T-Mobile? in the US) Still his assumption: no IPO in Skype's future; with a buyout nearly certain. The creative speculation appears shrewd and informed. So the questions?

• Is Skype worth $3 billion? 30 billion?
• Does Skype's M&A rumors affect partner plans and willingness to commit?
• Which buyers are more acceptable to Skypers? To Skype's business ecosystem?
• The money from an acquisition goes to the current owners (founders, some employees, investors). If you buy Skype for billions, how much more money would you want to invest and where would you put your money? If you and raised billions where would you spend the cash you raised?

What do you think? Can you substantiate? Read his blog Skyped.

Google is a perfect example of this latter effect, entering the market years after Alta Vista and Excite. And the Google of VoIP looks like it might be Skype, which was almost sold last week to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. for $3 billion. PBS | I, Cringely . July 28, 2005 - Skyped

Others that are talking Skype sell stories...
Om Malik
Newswireless
Mark Evans
Loic on Murdoch
Andrew Hansen
Jim Courtney: A Skype Investment Primer
Robert Scoble
Carlos N Velez: "Let's start a new rumor... Google is in serious merger discussions with Skype. The new company, to be called GooSky...."
Carlo at TechDirt
Jeremy Wagstaff: "I suppose we should steel ourselves for the possibility that it doesn't last, at least in its present format."
Michael Parekh: It's all Rope-a-dope
OnoTech: "Wrong, wrong, wrong"