Yak Communications on Wednesday announced the launch of its yakForFree Virtual VideoPhone software for Mac OS X. YakForFree enables users to make free voice and video calls to each other over the Internet using broadband connections. Optionally, the service can be used to make Voice over IP calls to land lines and cell phones with the addition of a paid component.
Features of yakForFree include video and instant messaging capabilities, audio conference for up to 10 users, unlimited distributed conferencing, quad-user video conferencing, audio and video call recording, speaker phone mode, call transfer, all logs, miss call indicator, auto answer and conference, and do not disturb.
While the free service enables users to communicate via the yakForFree system, users can upgrade to Yak’s WorldCity Voice over IP (VoIP) paid services to make voice calls to regular land lines or cell phone lines starting at two cents per minute.
The company plans to roll out an unlimited local and long distance calling plan for $19.99, and also intends to offer a Mobile Pocket PC version, a Linux version, and a version that works with Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP).