Yahoo! Inc. today introduced in the United States a new public beta of its instant messaging suite, Yahoo! Messenger with Voice, with enhanced PC-based calling capabilities.

With Phone Out, consumers in the U.S. can now make low-cost Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calls using their PC to call traditional or mobile phones in more than 180 countries.

Calls within the U.S. and to more than 30 countries can be made for two cents a minute or less. Additionally, U.S. consumers can receive calls on their PC from traditional and mobile phones for $2.99 a month or $29.90 a year with the Phone In feature. Phone In gives people a virtual presence in their city of choice, and wherever they travel their phone number will follow them.

"Yahoo!'s top priority is to provide a stellar communications service through a variety of easy, fun and inexpensive ways to stay connected with others around the world," said Brad Garlinghouse, vice president, Communications Products, Yahoo! Inc.

"We look forward to further incorporating voice features into Yahoo!'s global services, from communications to search, to help simplify and improve the Internet experience for our hundreds of millions of users around the world," he added.

The new PC-based calling features were initially introduced to international users in December 2005, and will continue to be rolled out in additional localized versions. The enhanced Yahoo! Messenger with Voice features will also be introduced into Yahoo!'s co-branded Internet access services, including AT&T Yahoo! High Speed Internet, in the coming months.

According to Reuters, in response to consumer complaints, Yahoo has dropped X10, the previous provider of software used to control sound quality and has signed up Global IP Sound as a supplier instead.

Yahoo! Messenger 7.5.0.647 has been certified as being 100% CLEAN and is available for download here.