Google Adds Calls to Gmail, Challenges Skyp
Google Inc. unveiled a way for Web users in the U.S. to make calls through its Gmail email service, further pushing into the Internet-calling business and ratcheting up competition with similar services such as Skype. At an event in San Francisco, Google said the new service, which will roll out this week, is free for calls to the U.S. and Canada at least until the end of the year, though there are costs to make international calls to landlines and mobile phones. Google said it hoped to later offer the service to international Gmail users and possibly to businesses. For Google, the move helps drive users to Gmail as well as the potentially to add a feature to its software for businesses, called Google Apps. More than 200 million people currently use Gmail actively, said Todd Jackson, a Google product manager. The move is Google's latest foray into the telecommunications industry. Two years ago, Google launched a feature that allows Gmail users to do free video chats with other ...
