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Yoomba

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Yoomba is a free service that lets anyone with an e-mail address send and receive instant messages and VoIP calls without creating any new user accounts. Needing only a functioning e-mail address, users can quickly download the Yoomba client from the company website, and without any registration can contact other e-mail addresses over chat or VoIP call by clicking one of two buttons that automatically appear next to e-mails in your e-mail client. In order to chat or make calls, however, both users need to have Yoomba: if the other address contacted does not have Yoomba, he/she will get an e-mail directed to Yoomba’s download site. Yoomba is compatible with many e-mail clients inculding GMail, Yahoo Mail, Hotmail, and Outlook.

The service is great because it eliminates the need for phone numbers. Users only need their email account and an email address to make a call or IM.

Now based in Silicon Valley, Yoomba was originally founded in Tel Aviv, Israel as one of the world’s first open communications companies. It faces competition from other more popular services like the IM client Meebo and VoIP company Skype, which have larger user bases and offer some more features. Yet Yoomba is unique to offer an open standard available to any community: it connects people universally across e-mail address as opposed to over closed user networks which often involve registration and restrictions.

Yoomba reached over 500,000 users in less than a month from its July 2007 launch.

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