Cowards Rejoice: Slydial Skips The Chit-Chat, Goes Right To Voicemail

Slydial, a free service, lets users connect directly to another person's mobile phone voicemail. And Slydial promises that no human interaction will take place. Instead, it bypasses the ringing process and goes straight to the mailbox, leaving the recipient wondering how they missed the call in the first place.

Users just call (267) SLY-DIAL from either their mobile phone or a landline. Once connected, they are prompted to enter the cell phone number of the person they're trying to reach, or avoid, if you will. Users hear a short, usually 15 second advertisement, then Slydial routes the call directly into the voicemail box of the person they're calling. For those who would rather leave voicemail all the time, instead of actually talking to someone, Slydial offers a subscription service for 15 cents per call, which skips the advertisement that is part of the free service.

Once the message is left, the recipient's voicemail lets them know they have a message, while also indicating they missed a call from your caller ID. It's the perfect crime.

Some cell phone carriers offer similar services that allow users to send voice messages that route directly into voicemail inboxes, but typically those services can only be used between devices on the same carriers' networks. Slydial, on the other hand, can be used regardless which carrier the caller and recipient use.

Gavin Macomber, co-founder of MobileSphere Ltd., the company behind Slydial, told the Associated Press that Slydial is not just for cowardly breakups, but can also be put to use in the business world.

Slydial's Web site offers several scenarios glorifying the process, from avoiding a talkative girlfriend, buying time before engaging an angry wife and skirting a direct conversation with your boss when calling out sick after a night of hard partying.

The site also offers other uses, for example: "You are working on a dozen different projects and have as many calls to return. Instead of being stuck on the phone with just one, leave each a voicemail with an update and you may just have enough time to enjoy Happy Hour." And, "You just gave an awesome pitch to a potential client. You want to call him and thank him for the opportunity but you know he is in another meeting and don't want to bother him. Leave him a voicemail and this personal touch may just tip the scales in your favor."

"Everyone has gone through the scenario where they've called somebody and just hoped they got voicemail so they didn't have to have a conversation," Macomber told the AP.

Slydial was developed as MobileSphere was developing a routing component of a service designed to lower international cell phone roaming costs. MobileSphere first rolled out Slydial for a testing phase in March and has bulked up to about 5,000 users since. The public beta of Slydial launched this week.

Right now, Slydial can only be used in the U.S. and users must have caller ID activated on their phones. Macomber told AP that is meant to, in part, prevent people from using it harass other people undetected.