The promise of free, landline quality sound, is gaining a wider audience. Internet telephony, which offers free voice calls to anyone using peer-to-peer networks, is becoming a formidable rival to traditional carriers such as Verizon and AT&T, offering virtually all the same features, at no cost to consumers. The latest advancement comes from VTech Communications, which has introduced a cordless phone, the usb7100 VTech Skype, that provides the benefits and features of Skype's free Internet telephony.

Donna Silbert, vice president of product management at VTech, was enthusiastic about the news. "Until now, consumers in the U.S. could only take advantage of Skype's free Internet telephony software and features when connected directly to their computer," she said. "VTech is excited to partner with Skype to offer users unlimited, superior quality voice calls using their cordless VTech handset anywhere in the home."

Users connect to both their existing telephone lines and Skype's telephone service. This is orchestrated using VTech's cordless handset, which can be used like a typical phone, with features including caller ID, call waiting, intercom, and conference call capabilities. There are even some services which traditional cordless phones cannot offer, such as the ability to display which contacts are online, as well as being able to set a presence status, for example, showing if users are online, away or do not want to be disturbed. Security is not an issue, because each call is automatically encrypted by Skype.

Niklas Zennstrom, CEO and co-founder, of Skype, said, "We are proud to partner with leading companies like VTech to help expand the flexibility of Skype software and services." He added, "VTech's cordless USB handset expands the Skype platforms for US consumers and compliments our free Internet telephony perfectly, providing a quality solution that makes staying in touch with family and friends easy and affordable."

The cordless handset will be featured January 6-8, 2005 at Caesars Palace Hotel and Casino, Florentine Ballroom, in conjunction with the 2005 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The products will be available in all major retail outlets and online at www.vtechphones.com in Spring 2005.