VoIP Toolkit

Skype: Do you get what you pay for?

Tags:
Customer Service,
VoIP,
SkypeOut

Ben Charny CNET News

Published: 21 Feb 2005 12:55 GMT

Getting what you pay for?
VoIP services, such as Skype's, allow an Internet connection to double as a telephone line. The software makes for dramatically cheaper dialling, mostly because the calls aren't taxed or regulated, but also due to the efficiencies of using the Internet Protocol to ferry the calls, rather than techniques the traditional telephone industry developed decades ago.

Other VoIP providers charge a flat rate of about £10 a month for unlimited calling in the UK and Ireland for domestic users, and will often charge more for business uses. Skype is free between callers who both use the company's software. Via SkypeOut, the company will complete calls to ordinary landline and cellular phones, charging 1.2 pence per minute to 20 countries in North America, Western Europe and Australasia.

Skype's struggles to control what may amount to only minor glitches illustrate the bigger problem of how a low-budget provider handles customer service. Skype has a few hundred employees, but so far, Skype customer service relies mostly on email, proactive customers and patience. James said the company is not in a position to send technicians to inspect individual user setups or Internet connections. "We rely on reports from users to investigate any potential trouble areas," she said.

That's how, for instance, the company learned that Internet connections behind firewalls are not able to use SkypeOut and was able to make people aware of workarounds. Skype lets users vent in free online forums, which are monitored by Skype staff who pass feedback to development and telephone operator partners, James said.

"We read forums to look at generic problems and of course listen to our users' opinions," she said.

Customer service addresses individual issues via email, at billing@skype.com, according to James. "The customer service department is rapidly growing and enhancing the service level for Skype's premium customers," she said.

But that's clearly not enough, say industry insiders, competitors and -- judging by the firestorm of protest on the forums -- Skype's own customers.

One SkypeOut customer said she'd pay for technical assistance. Another was more to the point about how she bought SkypeOut minutes and felt cheated.

"The money has been debited from my bank account, a reasonable period has passed, and Skype have not met their side of the contract -- so as far as I can tell, they've stolen from me," fumed one contributor to Skype Forum. "Further, they advertise Skype as something that will 'just work' -- and it categorically doesn't. What a horrendous user experience."

Price of popularity
In some way, Skype is victimised by its own success and, at 800,000 customers, it's among the most successful services of its kind ever. Despite its desire to keep spending down, Skype may be forced to eat into its revenues to bolster customer service staffs, suggest two industry analysts who report on VoIP providers. But because SkypeOut is Skype's only major source of income, that may be hard on a constrained budget, said one insider at Packet 8, a commercial VoIP provider.

But with subscriber rates high, Skype is pushing forward with other premium services, creating the potential for more awkward customer service crises.

The company is testing a voice mail system, the price of which is not being disclosed, as well as SkypeIn, a complement to SkypeOut in which landline or mobile phone callers can call Skype users on Internet-connected devices on which the company's software has been downloaded.

But as Skype gets set to roll out those new services, customers continue to stew over its existing premium service.

"I've been unable to make a call for a week now and have got no response whatsoever from Skype," fumed Skype forum user Moubliepas. "It seems they really don't care about our complaints. We should unite to make our voices heard."