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SAN JOSE, Calif. --(Business Wire)-- Dec. 13, 2006 Skype, the global Internet communications company, is now offering U.S. and Canadian consumers the new Skype Unlimited Calling plan, a paid annual subscription service that allows registered users to make 12 months of unlimited SkypeOut(TM) calls to any phone within the U.S. and Canada. This is the first time that Skype is making an annual subscription calling plan available anywhere in the world.

Skype allows its users to make great quality voice and video calls over the Internet. In addition, Skype can be used to share files, send instant messages, conduct conference calls, and more.

The Skype Unlimited Calling plan is available for a flat rate of $29.95 per year. People who sign up for the new plan before January 31, 2007 will receive a special discounted introductory rate of $14.95 per year - 50 percent off the regular price. While Skype to Skype calls will remain free, the new Skype Unlimited Calling plan is an easier and cheaper way for the growing number of SkypeOut users to stay in touch with friends and family over any mobile or landline phone. Consumers can also choose to pay for SkypeOut calls at low per-minute rates (e.g., 2.1 cents per minute within the U.S. and Canada).

"The new Skype Unlimited Calling Plan is an affordable option that will save consumers and small businesses hundreds of dollars compared to high rates charged by traditional phone companies," said Don Albert, VP & general manager for Skype North America. "We want to give Skype customers convenient options of choosing either an unlimited calling plan with a flat annual rate and or staying with our standard pay-per-minute offering."

The new pricing plan follows Skype's very successful promotion in which calls within the US and Canada are free until December 31, 2006. Available starting December 13th at skype.com, customers who purchase the new Skype Unlimited Calling plan before January 31, 2007 will get the discounted pricing of $14.95, as well as a bonus offer of 100 minutes of SkypeOut credit for making international calls and over $50 in discount coupons for purchasing Skype-certified hardware products.

Skype is the leading Internet voice calling solution in North America, with more than 136 million registered users globally, as of the end of September 2006. An independent research report called Consumer Home VoIP Trends published by ChangeWave Research in November 2006 found that Skype is the most popular residential VoIP service (29 percent) among the more than one-in-five (21 percent) U.S. telecommunications consumers already using VoIP at home. The survey of early adopter consumers also found that another 13 percent of U.S. telecommunications consumers plan to adopt VoIP technology within the next 12 months.