Application enables Skype users to make calls from mobile phones

Web telephony developer SoonR has unveiled an application which enables Skype users to make calls all over the world from their mobile phone when they are away from their PC.

SoonR Talk claims to make it easy for anyone with a mobile phone handset which has a browser and data service to use Skype while away from the PC.

The service works by using a PC like a switchboard to set up calls. Users simply click on the buddy with whom they wish to talk and SoonR Talk tells the PC to call their mobile phone using SkypeOut.

Skype's in-built functionality for calling non-Skype numbers then instructs Skype to call the buddy and places the user into a conference.

SoonR Talk can also create calls with multiple users from a single handset. The service shows which buddies are online and if they are not there, a user can IM them so they receive a message the next time they are using Skype. SoonR Talk fully supports Skype Chat.

"SoonR is addressing a very important aspect of mobility," said Tim Bajarin, president of research firm Creative Strategies.

"Our own extensive 'digital family' research shows that consumers want to be able to get at all their different forms of stored digital content in one convenient place, what some people are calling 'life caching'.

"SoonR's technology seems to offer the potential for one common platform across all media, including the various carrier and portal protocols. That could be a very powerful concept."

SoonR Talk is a free service currently in beta and is available to download from the SoonR website.