Skype is introducing new domestic calling plans for 24 countries where users will pay a monthly subscription and a connection fee but no per-minute charges, an Associated Press report said.
The Associated Press report said the monthly fees for the new Skype Pro plans have not yet been finalized, but they were expected to be set at less than 5 euros ($6.50).
The per-call connection fee for Skype Pro calls within a given country to a regular phone or mobile device within that same country will be 3.9 euro cents ($0. 5) said Stefan Oberg, general manager for Skype Telecoms.
Skype calls are dialled over a high-speed Internet connection using either a personal computer, a cordless handset configured to communicate directly over a broadband modem, or certain cell phones with Wi-Fi capability, the report said.
The report also said the new options were being launched a month after Skype, a subsidiary of eBay, introduced a North American service offering unlimited calls within the US and Canada with no connection or per-minute fees for about $30 per year, or less than half as much as Skype Pro appears likely to cost.
The countries where Skype Pro is being offered are Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan and the UK, the report said.