voip provider sipgate launched in the U.S. this week, with the intention of competing directly with landline telephone services - and with Skype.

"Sipgate, which has operated a successful VoIP business in Europe since 2004, launched a new free VoIP calling play in the U.S. that aims to disrupt the landline telephony business," writes FierceVoIP's Pete Wylie. "The service, called sipgate one, assigns users a free telephone number that allows them to receive calls from VoIP phones or softphones for free."

The service boasts a number of attractive features, including the following:

- Need to write down a number while driving? Record any phone conversation by pressing *6

- Want to customize your voicemail? Upload an mp3

- Want your calls to follow you? Have your home, office and mobile phone ring in parallel

- Left your mobile phone at home? Simply go online and divert calls to your office line

- Want to talk to friends in an ad-hoc conference? Bridge them with the touch of a button

- Missed calls while on a flight? A list is waiting for you in your email

"There is simply no barrier to people disconnecting their old phone lines anymore," says company CEO Thilo Salmon. "Phone and cable companies have long been pushing voice plans in the region of $25 to $40 per month - which end up being as much as $60 or more with extra charges - and that's just ridiculous. Even with calls to other landlines and mobile phones, most users will spend less than $5 a month using sipgate one. And for those people only receiving incoming calls on their VoIP phone, the service is completely free."

More here from PHONE+ ... more here from VoIP News ... more here from TMCnet ... and the press release is here.