Fring launches group video-calling for Android, iPhone

The British mobile communication company Fring has unveiled a new feature for its iPhone and Android clients: cross-platform group video calling.

The free Group Video feature, announced on Wednesday, allows up to four people to share a call at once, over Wi-Fi, 3G or 4G. Fring uses a proprietary technology called DVQ for its video-calling service.

"Fring leap-frogs sluggish, expensive PC group video-calling solutions by giving users the world's first mobile group video service, free," Fring chief executive Avi Shechter said in a statement. "There is no reason why users need to run home to their PC in order to have a 'spontaneous' video call with their friends and family."

Fring's biggest rival is Skype, which does not offer a group video-calling feature on smartphones. Skype's desktop group video-calling feature, launched in January, also requires a paid-for account.