The solution results from the partnering of local telecoms company Global Telecom and the Singaporean-listed network integrator MediaRing, the companies announced.
Skaap provides allows South Africans to make phone calls using Internet connections to over 240 countries worldwide, said Skaap GM Brett Magrath.
"We want to make it affordable to make international calls. Many South Africans ask friends and relatives to call them because local costs are so high - we want to reverse that trend," said Magrath.
"As an example, a Skaap subscriber with a broadband Internet connection can call a cellphone in the US using the Skaap PC Phone at a cost of 20c per minute."
Skaap subscribers can also make international calls from cellphones or fixed lines - termed the Skaap dial-in service. "Using the dial-in service subscribers can call a cellphone in the US at a cost of 48c," Magrath noted.
When utilising the dial-in service, calls are routed to MediaRing, which has interconnection agreements with networks in other nations, he added.
"In the third quarter of 2006, Skaap Talk, a free point-to-point and instant messaging PC phone solution, will be integrated into the services. As MediaRing is a member of the Google Federation, this new service will interoperate with Google Talk."
Though unable to put a figure on the investment of the project, Magrath said most of the costs involved establishing client and customer interfaces and applications. MediaRing made parallel investments in its infrastructure to support and integrate Skaap into its portfolio of VOIP businesses that it operates around the world, he concluded.
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