27 Jun 2012

Swedish telecoms group TeliaSonera says it will release final details of its planned charging structure for mobile voice-over-internet protocol (VoIP) calls ‘sometime in August’. The group has piloted the model by introducing special charges for VoIP calls made over the mobile network of its Yoigo subsidiary in Spain, with subscribers charged EUR6 (USD7.5) per month for 100MB of VoIP traffic, or somewhere in the region of between five and ten hours of call time. A spokesperson announced that TeliaSonera subscribers on data tariffs which currently allow them to use third-party VoIP services such as Skype and Google Talk via their mobile devices without incurring additional costs will not be liable for any additional specific VoIP charges until their existing contracts run out. ‘Also, we will continue to offer subscription packages where VoIP calls are included in the subscription price,’ the spokesperson added. TeliaSonera previously announced plans to introduce specific price frameworks for its mobile customers using third-party VoIP services in ‘many’ of its markets, while also revealing that it is working on an in-house web-based VoIP and multimedia communication application to be offered alongside the existing over-the-top voice services available.