First, a quick reminder about today's Summer Thursdays promotion. Get yourself over to Skype.com now, click on the link to claim your free minutes, ring up someone you know abroad, and laugh your socks off that it's not costing you a penny.

Now, time for a rant. Earlier this week, I needed a chat with my mum. Mum's currently in Ireland, and she was about to go into the pub (ah, the lure of the Guinness), so the call - from my friend's home landline to my mum's mobile - only lasted a couple of minutes.

Today, Mum texted me to say hello... and to suggest that we stick to texts from now on, because the call had cost her £5. Five pounds! Five hundred pence. Half a tenner. I owe my friend several days' lunch money to fund the call, but that was expected. It's the fact that my mum had to pay to receive a call that really maddens me.

Skype will put an end to the scandal of roaming mobile charges for many of us. But, until all our friends and mums have Skype, the mobile companies will continue ripping people off. Click for more...

A couple of months ago, criticism from irate subscribers, pressure groups and the European Union forced the mobile industry to address mobile roaming rates. But not by cutting roaming charges - instead, the GSM Association raised domestic prices to make up the shortfall. You couldn't make it up.

The technology used when you make a mobile call is the same whether your recipient is in this country or abroad. So why the huge extra fee? If the internet was run on that basis, no-one would use it.

Frankly, there's never been a better reason to use Skype. I know I've been banging on about how much I want Skype mobiles to be an everyday reality, but I'm going to say it again: they are the future of talk. Once Skype-enabled WiFi phones become widespread, eye-watering roaming rates will seem as outrageous and, frankly, as bizarre as Window Tax.