After E-Plus and Motorola deals, Skype will now also be preinstalled on mobile phones from Hutchison 3.

Skype and Hutchison 3 Group Join Forces

Pioneering 3G mobile operator Hutchison 3 Group is expected to be the first to market the Skype-enabled mobile devices. Hutchison is running friendly user trials to optimize the user experience and plans to launch later this year, following its trials, in countries including Austria, Australia, Hong Kong, Sweden, the UK and Italy. Trials will be carried out using enabled mobile phones from leading phone manufacturers.

3 Sweden is already offering a Skype bundle with a 3G flat-rate subscription and 3G data card. With a mobile flat-rate data plan from Hutchison 3, users can make unlimited Skype calls.

And Nokia wants to launch a phone compatible with Skybe in the third quarter of this year. According to Zennström, the Skype founder, telcos have to switch to flat rates and deliver value added services on top of that.

Via Le Monde and Ollie