This is sort of out of left field, but evidently Skype has discontinued and pulled the Skype Mobile software for Windows phones.

Why? They sort of answer in their FAQ, but to be honest it is more of a dodge:

Unfortunately, Skype Lite – a version of Skype for your mobile phone – and Skype for Windows Mobile are no longer available for download from our site.

We’ve chosen to withdraw Skype Lite and Skype for Windows Mobile because we want to offer our new customers an improved mobile experience – much like the version that has proved so popular on the iPhone, and which is now available on Symbian phones. Our focus is on providing a rich user experience that allows you to enjoy free Skype-to-Skype and low cost calls as easily on the move as you do at your desktop.

We felt that Skype Lite and Skype for Windows Mobile were not offering the best possible Skype experience.

Fair enough and we actually agree. Skype for Windows Mobile was really a huge program (~10MB) that ate a lot of resources. Granted, it did offer nearly the "full Skype experience" but at processing cost.

For Skype/VOIP, we here at WMExperts have always found Fring a much better alternative.

Still, Skype is obviously begging the question with their response: are they going to, you know, release a new version that is much more awesome and built better? Or are they just pulling it and wiping their hands altogether of Windows phone?

For the time being, you can still download and use Skype here. Or if on your phone, just scan the MS Tag to the right to direct download (11.7MB!) 

[WMPhone.de via WMPoweruser]

Don't tell AT&T or the upcoming Windows Marketplace, but Skype 3.0 is out of beta and ready for download. [via downloadsquad] Version 3.0 added the ability to sent texts and files, and that's still a go with this official release, along with all the VOIP goodness you're used to.

Get your download on here, or download the CAB file directly to your phone here.

For you folks who can't get enough of Skype, the 3.0 beta has been released with a couple of extra goodies.

On top of all the usual Skype features and an improved user interface, this latest version also supports file transfers and will send SMS messages, though they will dip into your Skype credits.

Check out a video of the 3.0 beta, then download it and give it a whirl.

Via Pocket PC Thoughts

Looks like a bunch of updates are coming along in December. We told you about SlingPlayer last week, Google Maps just today (awesome update) and here are a few others...

First up we have a new Skype beta is out (v2.5), which adds

• Wide range of resolution support (320x320; VGA)
• Improved sounds quality
• Improved stability
• Brings it closer to the desktop version

Adding about 0.75mb in weight, Skype for WM is now nearly 8mb in size on your device--which is pretty hefty. Still, this new version does run smoother and has better graphics, so it seems to be a good thing. Included is the handy Today plugin is well, where you can launch the app and check/set status.

Next up, the Core Player (see full review here) gets bumped to v1.3. This new version fixes a bunch of bugs, enhances performance and adds some features too like YouTube stream options (from 50 kbps to 2 Mbps), HTTP proxy support. Of course no trial is available, so you either have to upgrade your current version or just by it out right.

Finally, for the Treo 800w users, Zbop has finalized the long awaited "HideCarrier" plugin (click for pics & more info). What this little freebie does is "hide" that Sprint carrier line with those lil' icons to give you more screen real estate. Run in conjunction with TreoAlerts and you have a real winner combo.

Skype's mobile client for Windows Mobile has been updated to 2.2, it now is compatible with Windows Mobile 6.1. GSM Arena put it through its paces and found it to work well over WiFi, over 3G not so much. Otherwise you're looking at a pretty full-featured client, with support for calls, Skype-out for calling regular numbers, Skype's text-chat, etc.

One downside that GSM Arena notes is that, unlike when making normal calls, the screen stays on during a call and is therefore likely to get “cheek taps” that might accidentally end your call. 'Course, that's not a problem for WMExperts' readers, because y'all know about the clever software that just turns your screen off with the push of an assigned button.

Download Skype 2.2 for Windows Mobile [via Gear Diary]

Bully to Skype, who recently used Tim Wu's stirring (though academic, in both senses of the word) call for Mobile Net Neutrality as support for a petition to the FCC. At issue is that carriers are deliberately blocking their software, and Skype believes that current laws on the books say that's not so. I don't have a lot of confidence this will go anywhere (neither does the linked Ars Technica article), but it's nice to see people lining up.

Whether the carriers are blocking me from updating my WM phone to the latest ROM because they're overcautious, trying to get me to pay for walled-garden-style services I should be able to access for free elsewhere, or hiking SMS prices even as the cost to them is dropping, US carriers are really getting on my nerves lately.

Skype yesterday petitioned the FCC to lay the smack down on wireless phone carriers who "limit subscribers' right to run software communications applications of their choosing" (read: Skype software). Skype wants the agency to more stringently apply the famous 1968 Carterfone decision that allowed consumers to hook any device up to the phone network, so long as it did not harm the network. In Skype's eyes, that means allowing any software or applications to run on any devices that access the network.

Read: Skype asks FCC to open up cellular networks