Rather than bicker over what “open” means and whether Skype is open or not, Michael Robertson has just ignored the whole thing and taken action instead.
Today, Gizmo5 launched OpenSky, a SIP to Skype gateway. if you want to call a Skype user named echo123 you simply call SIP address sip:echo123@opensky.gizmo5.com
The free version can be used by anyone for calls up to 5 minutes long. For longer calls, you need to use their paid service, which is $20 per year for individuals.
I guess this will test Skype’s claim that no one is asking for this service.
[...] Gizmo5’s OpenSky proves there is a market for SIP to Skype, will Skype “cherry pick” that app and build [...]
[...] users can now call Skype users using the new OpenSky gateway released by [...]
Plugged it into Phweet works perfectly as long as the Skype contact is open to anonymous calls. Thats where I see the biggest problem. I can’t buy this service and use it unless I want to expose myself to any Skype spam caller. Even more important if I have my Skype forwarding to my mobile. But yes it works.
[...] is asking for. For better SIP/Skype interoperability, we still need to turn to third parties like OpenSky. On the other hand, while “Skype for SIP” appears to be a pretty small step toward [...]