'3' (the mobile operator) in the UK have released a Skype based handset.

This is interesting for couple of reasons:

• Firstly it is another attack on the 'voice as a commodity' differentiator; voice calls made through Skype to another Skype user become free.
• Secondly it reflects the confidence (or desperation) in 3's business model; Voice has been king for so long in telecoms that some find it hard to imagine anything else driving ARPU (Average Revenue Per User).

It is also interesting to note that while Skype is available as a pulg-in / download for a number of existing handsets no other operator (that comes to mind) ships with Skype pre-installed precisely because of the perceived threat to voice revenue.

Personally, I think that 3 is doing the right thing, I perceive a very strong movement to a service based, IP everywhere, telecoms industry (fixed and mobile). In fact I don't think it will be too long before an all IP mobile operator emerges - but probably in the MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) space.

What remains to be seen about 3's move is whether or not timing is right. The adopters of this service will probably be the youth segment and tech savvy early adopters, but both groups are exactly the sort of people who are very likely to know that Skype plug-ins are already available for other handsets - and hence on other operators.

I guess my reservations can be summed up in the following three questions:

1. Is their non-HSDPA (High-Speed Downlink Packet Access - a.k.a. 3.5G) service going to be good enough to ensure that the quality of the Skype call won't force people away? Yes, I know 3 have HSDPA, but this service won't be using it.
2. Has the number of regular Skype users grown large enough that people from other segments will be drawn to the service? Which is, of course, 3's main angle here.
3. Have enough user communities formed on Skype such that when you are mobile (and would want to use the handset) you stand a good chance of being able to 'call' the person you want through Skype?

It doesn't matter how you look at it, this is a gutsy move on 3's part. But then, this is hardly their first time out on the bleeding edge.