Fring has closed a second round of funding that is reportedly in the ballpark of $12 million. This has not yet been confirmed by the company. Globes reported that the funding was led by North Bridge Venture Partners.

Also participating in the round were VenFin Ltd. and Fring's existing investors Pitango Venture Capital, Veritas Venture Partners, and Yossi Vardi, which made earlier investments totaling a few million dollars, according to Globes.

fring is a free, downloadable mobile phone application enabling free mVoIP calls, real-time presence and live chat with multiple IM providers over mobile data networks or a Wi-Fi connection.

The fring mVoIP application offers mobile phone and smartphone users' real mobile independence. It allows them to roam freely between wireless networks (GPRS, 3G, Wi-Fi) and enjoy the benefits of multiple IM and SIP providers from one integrated contact list. fring users or "fringsters" can mVoIP (mobile VoIP) talk and live chat for free from their mobile handsets with other fring users, landline or cellular phones using SkypeOut and SIP providers as well as PC contacts through Skype, Google Talk, MSN Messenger, Twitter and now also ICQ.

fring is enhanced with real-time contact availability to help users choose the best call provider before dialling, based on the recipient's availability, reception quality and call cost, among other factors. It also saves users money by utilising free Wi-Fi internet access or fixed Internet data plans over 3G or GPRS instead of mobile airtime minutes. fring is PC and operator independent, operates on mass market mobile devices and does not require dedicated hardware.

The fring application is currently in BETA and compatible with the following handset models: Nokia series 60, Windows Mobile Series 5.0 and 6.0 handsets and the Sony Ericsson P990i and P1i.