Challenger Mobile has received a heightened level of interest in the company´s turnkey white-label Mobile VoIP platform from wireless carriers and service providers across the globe since the Hutchison 3/Skypephone joint service announcement on October 29, 2007.

In their joint press release, Hutchison 3 (branded as 3) and Skype announced a partnership in which Skype users in a limited seven-country geography can sign-up for 3G mobile service on 3´s network, after which they can place free Skype calls to other Skype users. To receive free Skype-to-Skype calling, users with existing mobile phone service must either switch their account to 3, or purchase and carry a second, Skype-enabled handset, and sign a contract with Hutchison 3 to handle the billing for all non-Skype calls. If a user is outside of Hutchison 3´s network, roaming charges apply, which can be exorbitantly expensive. The Skypephone is dual-band and will not function in the United States.

"The demand for mobile Internet calls is a reality that no serious operator can ignore any longer," said Challenger Mobile CEO Christina Sundman. "Skype´s traditional PC-to-PC VoIP service has been damaging to carriers worldwide because consumers utilize it to make free long distance and international calls, which reduces the most important and lucrative traffic for operators. Each new call made on the mobile Skype offering will likewise be cannibalistic to existing carriers, so they´re moving quickly to deploy their own standards-based mobile VoIP solutions -- and Challenger´s SIP based white-label offerings address their needs perfectly."

"We were participating in an industry event when the 3 Skypephone news hit the wire, and our booth was full of carriers looking for a Mobile VoIP solution that would work on any phone, across any network," added Sundman. "Virtually every operator recognizes that mobile VoIP is a key offering they must embrace to remain competitive in the mobile marketplace at large, and the 3 Skype partnership has just heightened that awareness.

"Forward-thinking providers now seek a well-designed, comprehensive offering that they can rebrand and market as their own," said Sundman. "These providers also seek a solution, like the Challenger Mobile platform, that offers true mobile independence to end-users, allowing them to make Internet calls to any number without that number belonging to a specific operator or carrier, as opposed to the 3 Skypephone that only offers Internet calls to other Skype users."

Challenger Mobile´s white-label Mobile VoIP platform helps mobile operators, wireless ISPs, and related service providers deliver their own branded Mobile VoIP services to subscribers, with a rapid time-to-market and a low barriers to entry.

Challenger allows subscribers to place calls from their mobile phones over the Internet, using a WiFi, GPRS or 3G connection. In addition to core Internet telephony capabilities, Challenger´s platform supports remote mobile handset configuration, call detail record support, and flexible billing system integration. For customers choosing Challenger´s optional hosting service, the platform also includes attractive call termination capabilities and rates.