Skype has decided to discontinue Italian geographic numbers: Online Numbers closed, due to the termination of Eutelia services on Skype. Refundsare coming, here’s how.
I “Skype Online Numbers, namely Italian geographic numbers, have been officially closed: the stalemate and uncertainty have reached their conclusion.
To provide this paid service, which involves assigning a phone number to receive calls from anywhere in the world (from both landlines and mobile phones), Skype referred to Eutelia, a company specializing in VoIP.
services. However, towards the end of summer, the situation began to take an unfavorable turn for Skype and its users because Eutelia announced the necessity to suspend the service, acknowledging – and therefore applying – a provision from the Ministry of Economic Development that prohibits the use of such numbers outside the area designated by the specific prefix.
The provision (prot. 59624, 07/14/2011) was promptly applied by Eutelia, and thus Skype initially attempted to restore the Italian geographic number service differently, ultimately concluding with a complete shutdown.
In simple terms, the usual practice of using the Skype Online Number wherever you were is no longer permitted: those who have a Skype Online Number with a Rome prefix will not be able to use it if they are, for example, on vacation in another Italian province and/or region, let alone abroad. Therefore, a principle of territoriality applies, which Eutelia has enforced, and the repercussions have manifested on Skype Online Numbers.
Those who wish to continue to keep their phone number assigned by Skype, can do so without any issues: the company itself points out that these numbers benefit from number portability rights, so if desired, users can switch to offers from other Italian telephone operators.
Regarding refund procedures, Skype states that no specific action is required from customers, as the company will directly contact them.
In the meantime, to apologize for the inconvenience, Skype has decided to offer Online Number customers one month offree subscription to “World Without Limits”, a tariff plan that allows for unlimited calls to over 40 countries around the world.
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