Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Boingo Wireless Partners With Skype On Wi-Fi Access

Los Angeles-based Boingo Wireless and Internet phone service Skype said this morning that the companies have partnered on a network access deal. According to the firms, the deal will allow Skype users to access Boingo's network of Wi-Fi hotspits worldwide using Skype's payment credits. The new feature--called Skype Access--is debuting on Skype's Mac software, and will roll out to other operating systems this year, the firms said. Boingo operates a network of Wi-Fi hotspot operators, and uses a unified billing system to allow users to connect to those networks. Skype--which is owned by eBay--operates a peer-to-peer VoIP system which enables Internet users to make voice calls to other Internet and also phone system users. Financial details of the deal and pricing was not disclosed, however the firms said pricing will vary based on location and currency.