To provide third-party developers and VoIP device manufacturers with open standards protocols that will enable them to easily integrate the AIM Call Out service into softphones, as well as SIP-enabled hardware and cell phones with wi-fi connectivity, AOL introduced today Open Voice APIs. Using the Internet to relay these calls, AIM Call Out integration will enable users to make low cost voice calls from anywhere in the world. The Open Voice APIs can be found at http://dev.aol.com/aimcall .

Built right into AIM, AIM Call Out is a pay-as-you-go outbound voice calling service that lets users make calls to landline and cell phones in more than 200 countries. This service complements the existing AIM Talk service, a free PC-to-PC voice calling service available to AIM users.

With no connection fee or monthly charge, AIM Call Out offers low per-minute rates. Users pay for call credits in increments as low as $5. For a complete list of long distance rates AIM users can visit http://call-out.aim.com/rates .

Using the Web Connect feature within the AIM Call Out service, users can also make phone-to-phone calls. Users simply enter their phone number and then the phone number of a friend. The user’s phone, in a few seconds, will ring and then connect them to their friend’s phone. Using AIM Call Out and Web Connect from their personal Voice Dashboard, AIM users can manage all of their voice activities.

Senior Vice President, AOL, Steve Murphy, said: “By opening up our voice communications gateway to developers we’re furthering the mission of AIM which is to facilitate the world’s real-time conversations”. “We’re building on the popularity of the Open AIM program and opening up the AIM Call Out platform, enabling open standards voice communication services to proliferate in the marketplace."