Sadly this is not true today -- some US phone plans do charge for receiving international calls! Yes, unfair and shocking and without justification, but allowed by the US regulators and subject to the terms of individual contracts. So the OP is right to be concerned. New phone contracts are now a minefield of hidden fees for lots of things, not just roaming (which is rarely justified except as a profit center). As for Skype, some of the phone companies are fighting back with high data charges for mobiles and other anti-Skype measures.