Vonage Aims to Extend Mobile Calling Efforts

Vonage has invested a fortune in getting people to switch their home phone service over to Internet-based calling, but has been largely absent from the mobile arena. Until today, that is.

The company announced Vonage Extensions, which allows people to make Vonage calls over their mobile phones, including international calls. The service is free, but only works if you are using Vonage for home phone calls.

“Now new and existing customers can call these unlimited countries on their mobile phones for no additional cost,” Vonage CEO Marc Lefar said in a statement. “This new service dramatically increases the value of Vonage’s core offering, providing customers with more flexibility and savings when making international calls.”

Customers can add any phone number as an “extension” to their Vonage account, and dial an access number and the number they wish to call, much like a calling card. The service works with any mobile phone, but the company also plans to introduce iPhone and Android apps over the coming weeks, which will simplify the process so users can simply dial a number from their contact list without having to enter so many numbers.

With the move, Vonage will also find itself up against a range of competitors, including familiar foes like Skype as well as new mobile-focused competitors such as Viber.

It’s not the first foray into mobile for Vonage. The company released an iPhone app back in 2009, though it only allowed calls over Wi-Fi.