Skype’s domination of the Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) sector could soon be over, with a new offering from Google.

The new service launched late last week allows users to make calls via the Gmail interface to landlines and mobiles. Calls within US and Canada are currently free, whilst calls to a select list of countries are billed at 2 cents a minute. There is currently no word as to whether Australian based users will also be offered a ‘free’ trial period.

“This is a real big deal because now hundreds of millions of Gmail users can make phone calls right from their Gmail page,” said Craig Walker, product manager for real-time communications to BBC News. “They don’t need to download an additional application or anything to start making really high-quality low-cost calls. For the user it means much more efficient and low-cost communications.”

This addition is Google’s latest addition to its Gmail enhancements, which saw free video chats being introduced two years ago. Google is also making its mark within the telecommunications industry with its Android operating system that is currently used by several Motorola and HTC phones.