To compete with Yahoo, Skype and others fighting for users of voice over IP, Lycos has joined with India-based Globe 7 to provide a new product that combines low-cost and free ad-supported dialing with detailed media entertainment content, ClickZ reports (via MediaBuyerPlanner). After "softphone" users use up their first 100 free minutes of PC-to-PC phone calls, they must build up credits through a lead-generation program.

For that program, users sign up or request information for a service from a variety of sponsors to earn credits; there are U.K.-based and international offers. The service also provides on-demand and streaming video, and an MP3 player.

Lycos will run a marketing promotion the first 60 days after the service becomes available, and will also market the application on its network to an estimated 24.6 million users.

"It is a fascinating Trojan horse," said Gartner Group Research vice-president Allen Weiner. "Needless to say, Lycos is interested in doing anything it can to bring back the luster to the brand from earlier days of the internet. It's an interesting way of getting people hooked and getting them to try the service."