When you launch the app you’re prompted to enter your mobile phone number and email address. The first so Vonage can use your mobile number for outgoing calls, and the second for account management purposes. Also, Vonage uploads your phone’s address book to their servers. Unlike some other apps I could mention, Vonage Mobile is kind enough to warn you that it’s doing so.

Vonage Mobile allows users to make app-to-app calls over 3G, 4G, and Wi-Fi. Calls to other Vonage Mobile app users are free, as are calls to any Vonage number. Interestingly, the app does not require you to be a Vonage customer to make calls. Credit for international calls can be added via in-app purchase.

Vonage Mobile is a free download from the Android App Market and the iOS App Store. The iOS app is compatible with the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. It is not, however, a universal app, which means it isn’t optimized for iPad, only compatible. Check it out and let us know what you think in the comments.

According to internal FBI sources cited by CNET, the government obtained warrants to conduct electronic surveillance of MegaUpload. The surveillance was likely conducted using government-issued spyware, which would have been able to gain access to email data and Skype chat logs stored on MegaUpload’s computers. While Skype only maintains logs of users’ activity going back 30 days, logs can be kept on users’ hard drives indefinitely.

Some of the material intercepted by the FBI appears pretty damaging to MegaUpload founder Kim DotCom. One conversation from 2007 is particularly damning. According to the records obtained by Stuff’s New Zealand office, the head programmer and co-founder at MegaUpload were worried about a MegaUpload’s “risky” situation, and wondered whether DotCom could be trusted not to take the company’s money and run.

DotCom and the other MegaUpload employees who were arrested are currently still in New Zealand. The U.S. government has requested they be extradited to America for trial on charges that MegaUpload knowingly facilitated copyright infringement.

A new study released today from TeleGeography, a telecom market research firm, shows the inverse correlations of decreasing traffic of international phone calls with the booming growth of Skype-to-Skype international calls. From their summary:

International long-distance traffic growth is slowing rapidly. According to new data from TeleGeography, international long-distance traffic grew four percent in 2011, to 438 billion minutes. This growth rate was less than one-third of the industry’s long-run historical average of 13 percent annual growth.

In contrast to international phone traffic, Skype’s cross-border traffic has continued to soar. TeleGeography estimates that cross-border Skype-to-Skype calls (including video calls) grew 48 percent in 2011, to 145 billion minutes. Although the volume of international traffic routed via telephone companies remains more than three times greater than Skype’s cross-border volumes, their growth rates differ dramatically. TeleGeography estimates that Skype added 47 billion minutes of international traffic in 2011 — more than twice as much as all the telephone companies in the world, combined.

The correlation, however, likely suggests causality instead of merely pointing out two concurrent trends. Stephan Beckert, an analyst with TeleGeography, said that “given Skype’s enormous traffic volumes, it’s difficult not to conclude that at least some of Skype’s growth is coming at the expense of traditional carriers.” In what they’ve labeled the Skype Effect, the loss of international call traffic from phone companies has directly translated into fat stacks of caller traffic for Skype.

“If all of Skype’s on-net traffic had been routed via phone companies,” Beckert continues, “global cross-border telephone traffic would have grown 13 percent in 2011, remaining in line with historical growth rates.”

To wit:

Aside from the obvious straight-up yoinking of international calls happening in this graph here, is anybody else really curious as to why 2000 was such an awesome year to call people in other countries? Again, it’s certainly not because people wanna make less international phone calls in the past few years – just look at the steep slopes of growth on this next bar graph.

This probably shouldn’t qualify as news given it wedges nicely into the category labeled “inevitable,” but the real story here is the one about another communications industry – this time the phone companies – caught with their pants down while The Future briskly passed them by. If a company’s vision is so limited as to fail to anticipate the obvious and imminent arrival of more advanced technology that will ultimately render their services obsolete, then that’s too bad – they’ve earned that permanent vacation to Loserville. The people are gonna use whatever makes their life convenient and, today, that convenience is called Skype.

Sony at CES announced the new Wi-Fi enabled Bloggie Live HD Camera. The device is significant because it is integrated with Skype’s Qik Video service.

The Bloggie Live camera is a fully featured video recorder that features 8GB of internal storage, full 1080p HD video, 12.8 megapixel still shots, 3-inch touchscreen, records in MP4 format and its Wi-Fi enabled as its full name suggests.

The real kicker with this device is not so much that it’s a video recorder because there are already plenty of devices, including your smartphones, that do that. The device can upload through it’s Wi-Fi connection all the videos the user takes to Facebook, YouTube and PlayMemories Online.

The device can also broadcast live which is a major plus as live streaming on phones is still somewhat iffy. It also allows people with compatible devices to comment on the live stream as it’s being recorded with their comments popping up on the Bloggie Live’s screen.

The device was revealed to be fully compatible with Qik Video service on Skype’s blog. This allows the Bloggie Live to do all of its live streaming magic. It also features Qik’s full suite of video sharing features.

With phones becoming more and more advanced, it’s going to be harder for devices like the Bloggie Live to stand out. A lot of what it can do can already be done by smartphones. Heck, Qik was made for smartphones.

It’s still a nice device since there’s gonna be a market for dedicated mini-recorders for a few more years at least. The move towards Wi-Fi enabled video recorders will definitely extend their life as there are still consumers who prefer devices that are dedicated to a singular function unlike smartphones that are a jack of all trades and master of none.

The Bloggie Live HD Camera will be available on January 11.

Skype is providing the service in the city from noon on 12/31 until noon on 01/01.

“New Year’s Eve revelers celebrating within the areas covered by Skype WiFi partner Towerstream’s network can say Happy New Year to loved ones via a Skype video call or voice call with free Skype WiFi,” says Skype’s Linda Summers.

Neighborhoods within the network include:

- Times Square
- West Village
- East Village
- South Village
- Greenwich Village
- NoHo
- SoHo
- Lower East Side
- Clinton
- Chelsea
- Union Square
- Midtown
- Midtown South
- Murray Hill
- Stuyvesant Park
- Turtle Bay

“Just connect to the ‘Skype WiFi’ hotspot on your device WiFi settings,” says Summers. “Make sure you have the latest version of Skype installed on your Windows or Mac device, or the Skype WiFi app on iOS and follow the prompts. Once connected with Skype WiFi, you can make a Skype video or voice call, surf the web, send an email, check your friend’s updates or hang out online. Enjoy.”

Again, Skype is encouraging users to tweet with the hashtag #freeskypewifi while they’re using it.

“Travelers passing through or delayed in over 50 airports across the country,” Skype’s Shadi Mahassel says, “will be able to access third-party hotspots using Skype WiFi and connect with loved ones via a Skype video or voice call for free.”

Here’s a look at the locations:

Included are airports in: Spokane, Portland, San Francisco, Sacramento, Monterey, Burbank, Scottsdale, Juneau, Billings, Jackson Hole, Denver, Aspen, Durango, El Paso, Austin, Houston, Oklahoma City, Omaha, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Des Moines, St. Louis, Memphis, Birmingham, Atlanta, Miami, Louisville, Indianapolis, Chicago, South Bend, Kalamazoo, Mosinee (Central Wisconsin Airport), Detroit, Milwaukee, Buffalo, Albany, New York, Boston, Washington D.C., Norfolk, Newport News, and more.

Mouseover the Skype logos to see all cities.

“The holidays are all about connecting with those you love,” says Mahassel. “Skype is excited to help you maintain these meaningful connections wherever you may be this holiday season. A voice or video call via Skype when you can’t be together for the holidays is the next best thing to being there.”

While you’re using your free Skype WiFi, Skype is asking users to tweet about their experience using the #freeskypewifi hashtag.

“We’ve brought this out just in time for the upcoming holiday season, so you can share your special moments with your loved ones,” says Skype’s Dan Chastney.

Also included in the update is improved battery life and video quality on devices using NVIDIA’s Tegra 2 chipset. This includes: the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, the Motorola XOOM, and the Acer Iconia Tablet.

“We are also working hard to extend the list of whitelisted devices for video support,” says Chastney. “These handsets have been tested by Skype’s Engineering Team to ensure the best possible video experience. Latest additions include the HTC Amaze 4G, Motorola DROID 4 and Motorola DROID RAZR. In general, almost anyone with an Android device running Android 2.2 (Froyo) or above can try out Skype video calling for free. We’ll let you know if you can turn on video calling when you first start up Skype on a non whitelisted handset.”

The new version of Skype for Android can be downloaded from the Android Market.

“This new development in the Skype-Facebook partnership is the latest example of how Skype is removing communication barriers and making it easier to connect with friends, family and business colleagues,” says Skype’s Rick Osterloh.

I’d add that with the Mac release, it’s also an example of Microsoft sticking to its word of not hording Skype features for its own platform.

“Our approach to social is about personal connections with people,” says Osterloh. “We are on a mission to connect over one billion people and our continued partnership with Facebook brings us one step closer to this goal.”

To set up a Facebook-to-Facebook call with Skype, you’ll need to connect your Facebook account, select a Facebook friend and hit the video call button.

Other new features include:

- video rendering for a smoother experience on Mac

- group screen sharing for Windows (with a premium subscription)

You can download the latest version of Skype here.

View more daily video round-ups here.

Galaxy Nexus: Calling All:

Galaxy Nexus:

Google celebrates LEO, the world’s first business computer. They shared this video on the official blog today:

Skype for Windows gets Facebook integration:

The Nautilus Aperture Door:

A Time-lapse project:

The YouTube blog provides a “mid-Movember check-in” sharing various moustache videos:

View more daily infographic round-ups here.

OnlinePHD.org shares this look at how Facebook is “enriching the college experience”:

Created by: Online PhD

Microsoft announced the closing of its Skype acquisition. They also shared this Skype infographic: