Instant messaging

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Instant messaging (IM) technology is a

type of online chat that offers real-time
text transmission over the Internet. A
LAN messenger operates in a similar way
over a local area network. Short
messages are typically transmitted
between two parties, when each user
chooses to complete a thought and
select "send". Some IM applications can
use push technology to provide real-time
text, which transmits messages
character by character, as they are
composed. More advanced instant
messaging can add file transfer, clickable
hyperlinks, Voice over IP, or video chat.

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A buddy list in Pidgin 2.0

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Instant messengers by protocol

Non-IM types of chat include multicast

transmission, usually referred to as "chat
rooms", where participants might be
anonymous or might be previously
known to each other (for example
collaborators on a project that is using
chat to facilitate communication). Instant
messaging systems tend to facilitate
connections between specified known
users (often using a contact list also
known as a "buddy list" or "friend list").
Depending on the IM protocol, the
technical architecture can be peer-to-
peer (direct point-to-point transmission)
or client-server (an Instant message
service center retransmits messages
from the sender to the communication
device).

By 2010, instant messaging over the Web

was in sharp decline,[1] in favor of
messaging features on social networks.
The most popular IM platforms were
terminated, such as AIM which closed
down[2] and Windows Live Messenger
which merged into Skype.[3] Instant
messaging has since seen a revival in
popularity in the form of "messaging
apps" (usually on mobile devices) which
by 2014 had more users than social
networks.[4]

Overview
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Instant messaging is a set of

communication technologies used for
text-based communication between two
or more participants over the Internet or
other types of networks.[5] IM–chat
happens in real-time. Of importance is
that online chat and instant messaging
differ from other technologies such as
email due to the perceived quasi-
synchrony of the communications by the
users. Some systems permit messages
to be sent to users not then 'logged on'
(offline messages), thus removing some
differences between IM and email (often
done by sending the message to the
associated email account).[6]

IM allows effective and efficient

communication, allowing immediate
receipt of acknowledgment or reply.
However IM is basically not necessarily
supported by transaction control. In
many cases, instant messaging includes
added features which can make it even
more popular. For example, users may
see each other via webcams, or talk
directly for free over the Internet using a
microphone and headphones or
loudspeakers. Many applications allow
file transfers, although they are usually
limited in the permissible file-size.[7]

It is usually possible to save a text

conversation for later reference. Instant
messages are often logged in a local
message history, making it similar to the
persistent nature of emails.

History
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Command-line Unix "talk", using a split screen user

interface, was popular in the 1980s and early
1990s.

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litrato

2014 recreation screenshot of the original

Talkomatic program, released in 1973, on the
PLATO system (on an orange plasma display).
Though the term dates from the 1990s,
instant messaging predates the Internet,
first appearing on multi-user operating
systems like Compatible Time-Sharing
System (CTSS) and Multiplexed
Information and Computing Service
(Multics)[8] in the mid-1960s. Initially,
some of these systems were used as
notification systems for services like
printing, but quickly were used to
facilitate communication with other
users logged into the same machine. As
networks developed, the protocols
spread with the networks. Some of these
used a peer-to-peer protocol (e.g. talk,
ntalk and ytalk), while others required
peers to connect to a server (see talker
and IRC). The Zephyr Notification Service
(still in use at some institutions) was
invented at MIT's Project Athena in the
1980s to allow service providers to
locate and send messages to users.

Parallel to instant messaging were early

online chat facilities, the earliest of which
was Talkomatic (1973) on the PLATO
system, which allowed 5 people to chat
simultaneously on a 512x512 plasma
display (5 lines of text + 1 status line per
person). During the bulletin board system
(BBS) phenomenon that peaked during
the 1980s, some systems incorporated
chat features which were similar to
instant messaging; Freelancin'
Roundtable was one prime example. The
first[9] such general-availability
commercial online chat service (as
opposed to PLATO, which was
educational) was the CompuServe CB
Simulator in 1980,[10] created by
CompuServe executive Alexander
"Sandy" Trevor in Columbus, Ohio.

Early instant messaging programs were

primarily real-time text, where characters
appeared as they were typed. This
includes the Unix "talk" command line
program, which was popular in the 1980s
and early 1990s. Some BBS chat
programs (i.e. Celerity BBS) also used a
similar interface. Modern
implementations of real-time text also
exist in instant messengers, such as
AOL's Real-Time IM[11] as an optional
feature.[12]

In the latter half of the 1980s and into the

early 1990s, the Quantum Link online
service for Commodore 64 computers
offered user-to-user messages between
concurrently connected customers,
which they called "On-Line Messages" (or
OLM for short), and later "FlashMail."
Quantum Link later became America
Online and made AOL Instant Messenger
(AIM, discussed later). While the
Quantum Link client software ran on a
Commodore 64, using only the
Commodore's PETSCII text-graphics, the
screen was visually divided into sections
and OLMs would appear as a yellow bar
saying "Message From:" and the name of
the sender along with the message
across the top of whatever the user was
already doing, and presented a list of
options for responding.[13] As such, it
could be considered a type of graphical
user interface (GUI), albeit much more
primitive than the later Unix, Windows
and Macintosh based GUI IM software.
OLMs were what Q-Link called "Plus
Services" meaning they charged an extra
per-minute fee on top of the monthly Q-
Link access costs.
Modern, Internet-wide, GUI-based
messaging clients as they are known
today, began to take off in the mid-1990s
with PowWow, ICQ, and AOL Instant
Messenger. Similar functionality was
offered by CU-SeeMe in 1992; though
primarily an audio/video chat link, users
could also send textual messages to
each other. AOL later acquired Mirabilis,
the authors of ICQ; a few years later ICQ
(then owned by AOL) was awarded two
patents for instant messaging by the U.S.
patent office. Meanwhile, other
companies developed their own
software; (Excite, MSN, Ubique, and
Yahoo!), each with its own proprietary
protocol and client; users therefore had
to run multiple client applications if they
wished to use more than one of these
networks. In 1998, IBM released IBM
Lotus Sametime, a product based on
technology acquired when IBM bought
Haifa-based Ubique and Lexington-based
Databeam.

In 2000, an open-source application and

open standards-based protocol called
Jabber was launched. The protocol was
standardized under the name Extensible
Messaging and Presence Protocol
(XMPP). XMPP servers could act as
gateways to other IM protocols, reducing
the need to run multiple clients. Multi-
protocol clients can use any of the
popular IM protocols by using additional
local libraries for each protocol. IBM
Lotus Sametime's November 2007
release added IBM Lotus Sametime
Gateway support for XMPP.

As of 2010, social networking providers

often offer IM abilities. Facebook Chat is
a form of instant messaging, and Twitter
can be thought of as a Web 2.0 instant
messaging system. Similar server-side
chat features are part of most dating
websites, such as OKCupid or
PlentyofFish. The spread of smartphones
and similar devices in the late 2000s also
caused increased competition with
conventional instant messaging, by
making text messaging services still
more ubiquitous.

Many instant messaging services offer

video calling features, voice over IP and
web conferencing services. Web
conferencing services can integrate both
video calling and instant messaging
abilities. Some instant messaging
companies are also offering desktop
sharing, IP radio, and IPTV to the voice
and video features.

The term "Instant Messenger" is a

service mark of Time Warner[14] and may
not be used in software not affiliated with
AOL in the United States. For this reason,
in April 2007, the instant messaging
client formerly named Gaim (or gaim)
announced that they would be renamed
"Pidgin".[15]

2010s: Mobile messaging apps

replace IM
…

In the 2010s, more people started to use

messaging apps on modern computers
and devices like WhatsApp, WeChat,
Viber, Facebook Messenger, Telegram,
Signal and Line rather than instant
messaging on computers like AIM and
Windows Live Messenger. For example,
WhatsApp was founded in 2009, and
Facebook acquired in 2014, by which
time it already had half a billion users.[16]
Clients
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Each modern IM service generally

provides its own client, either a
separately installed piece of software, or
a browser-based client. These usually
only work within the same IM network,
although some allow limited function
with other services. Third party client
software applications exist that will
connect with most of the major IM
services.

Interoperability
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Pidgin's tabbed chat window in Linux

Standard complementary instant

messaging applications offer functions
like file transfer, contact list(s), the ability
to hold several simultaneous
conversations, etc. These may be all the
functions that a small business needs,
but larger organizations will require more
sophisticated applications that can work
together. The solution to finding
applications capable of this is to use
enterprise versions of instant messaging
applications. These include titles like
XMPP, Lotus Sametime, Microsoft Office
Communicator, etc., which are often
integrated with other enterprise
applications such as workflow systems.
These enterprise applications, or
enterprise application integration (EAI),
are built to certain constraints, namely
storing data in a common format.

There have been several attempts to

create a unified standard for instant
messaging: IETF's Session Initiation
Protocol (SIP) and SIP for Instant
Messaging and Presence Leveraging
Extensions (SIMPLE), Application
Exchange (APEX), Instant Messaging and
Presence Protocol (IMPP), the open XML-
based Extensible Messaging and
Presence Protocol (XMPP), and Open
Mobile Alliance's Instant Messaging and
Presence Service developed specifically
for mobile devices.

Most attempts at producing a unified

standard for the major IM providers (AOL,
Yahoo! and Microsoft) have failed, and
each continues to use its own proprietary
protocol.

However, while discussions at IETF were

stalled, Reuters signed the first inter-
service provider connectivity agreement
in September 2003. This agreement
enabled AIM, ICQ and MSN Messenger
users to talk with Reuters Messaging
counterparts and vice versa. Following
this, Microsoft, Yahoo! and AOL agreed to
a deal in which Microsoft's Live
Communications Server 2005 users
would also have the possibility to talk to
public instant messaging users. This
deal established SIP/SIMPLE as a
standard for protocol interoperability and
established a connectivity fee for
accessing public instant messaging
groups or services. Separately, on
October 13, 2005, Microsoft and Yahoo!
announced that by the 3rd quarter of
2006 they would interoperate using
SIP/SIMPLE, which was followed, in
December 2005, by the AOL and Google
strategic partnership deal in which
Google Talk users would be able to
communicate with AIM and ICQ users
provided they have an AIM account.

There are two ways to combine the many

disparate protocols:

Combine the many disparate protocols

inside the IM client application.
Combine the many disparate protocols
inside the IM server application. This
approach moves the task of
communicating with the other services
 to the server. Clients need not know or
care about other IM protocols. For
example, LCS 2005 Public IM
Connectivity. This approach is popular
in XMPP servers; however, the so-
called transport projects suffer the
same reverse engineering difficulties
as any other project involved with
closed protocols or formats.

Some approaches allow organizations to

deploy their own, private instant
messaging network by enabling them to
restrict access to the server (often with
the IM network entirely behind their
firewall) and administer user
permissions. Other corporate messaging
systems allow registered users to also
connect from outside the corporation
LAN, by using an encrypted, firewall-
friendly, HTTPS-based protocol. Usually,
a dedicated corporate IM server has
several advantages, such as pre-
populated contact lists, integrated
authentication, and better security and
privacy.

Certain networks have made changes to

prevent them from being used by such
multi-network IM clients. For example,
Trillian had to release several revisions
and patches to allow its users to access
the MSN, AOL, and Yahoo! networks,
after changes were made to these
networks. The major IM providers usually
cite the need for formal agreements, and
security concerns as reasons for making
these changes.

The use of proprietary protocols has

meant that many instant messaging
networks have been incompatible and
users have been unable to reach users
on other networks.[17] This may have
allowed social networking with IM-like
features and text messaging an
opportunity to gain market share at the
expense of IM.[18]

IM language
Users sometimes make use of internet
slang or text speak to abbreviate
common words or expressions to
quicken conversations or reduce
keystrokes. The language has become
widespread, with well-known expressions
such as 'lol' translated over to face-to-
face language.

Emotions are often expressed in

shorthand, such as the abbreviation LOL,
BRB and TTYL; respectively laugh(ing)
out loud, be right back, and talk to you
later.

Some, however, attempt to be more

accurate with emotional expression over
IM. Real time reactions such as (chortle)
(snort) (guffaw) or (eye-roll) are
becoming more popular. Also there are
certain standards that are being
introduced into mainstream
conversations including, '#' indicates the
use of sarcasm in a statement and '*'
which indicates a spelling mistake
and/or grammatical error in the prior
message, followed by a correction.[19]

Business application
Instant messaging has proven to be
similar to personal computers, email, and
the World Wide Web, in that its adoption
for use as a business communications
medium was driven primarily by
individual employees using consumer
software at work, rather than by formal
mandate or provisioning by corporate
information technology departments.
Tens of millions of the consumer IM
accounts in use are being used for
business purposes by employees of
companies and other organizations.

In response to the demand for business-

grade IM and the need to ensure security
and legal compliance, a new type of
instant messaging, called "Enterprise
Instant Messaging" ("EIM") was created
when Lotus Software launched IBM
Lotus Sametime in 1998. Microsoft
followed suit shortly thereafter with
Microsoft Exchange Instant Messaging,
later created a new platform called
Microsoft Office Live Communications
Server, and released Office
Communications Server 2007 in October
2007. Oracle Corporation has also
jumped into the market recently with its
Oracle Beehive unified collaboration
software.[20] Both IBM Lotus and
Microsoft have introduced federation
between their EIM systems and some of
the public IM networks so that
employees may use one interface to both
their internal EIM system and their
contacts on AOL, MSN, and Yahoo. As of
2010, leading EIM platforms include IBM
Lotus Sametime, Microsoft Office
Communications Server, Jabber XCP and
Cisco Unified Presence. Industry-focused
EIM platforms such as Reuters
Messaging and Bloomberg Messaging
also provide IM abilities to financial
services companies.

The adoption of IM across corporate

networks outside of the control of IT
organizations creates risks and liabilities
for companies who do not effectively
manage and support IM use. Companies
implement specialized IM archiving and
security products and services to
mitigate these risks and provide safe,
secure, productive instant messaging
abilities to their employees. IM is
increasingly becoming a feature of
enterprise software rather than a stand-
alone application.

Types of products
IM products can usually be categorised
into two types: Enterprise Instant
Messaging (EIM)[21] and Consumer
Instant Messaging (CIM).[22] Enterprise
solutions use an internal IM server,
however this isn't always feasible,
particularly for smaller businesses with
limited budgets. The second option,
using a CIM provides the advantage of
being inexpensive to implement and has
little need for investing in new hardware
or server software.
For corporate use, encryption and
conversation archiving are usually
regarded as important features due to
security concerns.[23] There are also a
bunch of open source encrypting
messengers.[24] Sometimes the use of
different operating systems in
organizations requires use of software
that supports more than one platform.
For example, many software companies
use Windows in administration
departments but have software
developers who use Linux.

An Instant Message Service Center

(IMSC) is a network element in the
mobile telephone network which delivers
instant messages. When a user sends an
IM message to another user, the phone
sends the message to the IMSC. The
IMSC stores the message and delivers it
to the destination user when they are
available. The IMSC usually has a
configurable time limit for how long it will
store the message. Few companies who
make many of the IMSCs in use in the
GSM world are Miyowa, Followap and
OZ. Other players include Acision,
Colibria, Ericsson, Nokia, Comverse
Technology, Now Wireless, Jinny
Software, Miyowa, Feelingk and few
others.

Serverless messengers …
Major IM services are controlled by their
corresponding companies. They usually
follow the client-server model when all
clients have to first connect to the central
server. This requires users to trust this
server because messages can generally
be accessed by the company.
Companies can be compelled to reveal
their user's communication.[25]
Companies can also suspend user
accounts for any reason. There is the
class of instant messengers that uses
the serverless model, which doesn't
require servers, and the IM network
consists only of clients. There are several
serverless messengers: RetroShare, Tox,
Bitmessage, Ricochet, Ring. Serverless
messengers are generally more secure
because they involve fewer parties.

Conversational commerce
Conversational commerce is e-
commerce via various means of
messaging:

live chat on e-commerce Web sites,

live chat on messaging apps such as
WeChat, Facebook Messenger and
WhatsApp[26]
chatbots on messaging apps or Web
sites
via voice assistants[27]
Security risks
Crackers (malicious or black hat hackers)
have consistently used IM networks as
vectors for delivering phishing attempts,
"poison URLs", and virus-laden file
attachments from 2004 to the present,
with over 1100 discrete attacks listed by
the IM Security Center[28] in 2004–2007.
Hackers use two methods of delivering
malicious code through IM: delivery of
viruses, trojan horses, or spyware within
an infected file, and the use of "socially
engineered" text with a web address that
entices the recipient to click on a URL
connecting him or her to a website that
then downloads malicious code.
Viruses, computer worms, and trojans
usually propagate by sending themselves
rapidly through the infected user's
contact list. An effective attack using a
poisoned URL may reach tens of
thousands of users in a short period
when each user's contact list receives
messages appearing to be from a trusted
friend. The recipients click on the web
address, and the entire cycle starts
again. Infections may range from
nuisance to criminal, and are becoming
more sophisticated each year.

IM connections sometimes occur in plain

text, making them vulnerable to
eavesdropping. Also, IM client software
often requires the user to expose open
UDP ports to the world, raising the threat
posed by potential security
vulnerabilities.[29]

Compliance risks
In addition to the malicious code threat,
the use of instant messaging at work
also creates a risk of non-compliance to
laws and regulations governing use of
electronic communications in
businesses.

In the United States …

In the United States alone there are over
10,000 laws and regulations related to
electronic messaging and records
retention.[30] The better-known of these
include the Sarbanes–Oxley Act, HIPAA,
and SEC 17a-3.

Clarification from the Financial Industry

Regulatory Authority (FINRA) was issued
to member firms in the financial services
industry in December, 2007, noting that
"electronic communications", "email", and
"electronic correspondence" may be used
interchangeably and can include such
forms of electronic messaging as instant
messaging and text messaging.[31]
Changes to Federal Rules of Civil
Procedure, effective December 1, 2006,
created a new category for electronic
records which may be requested during
discovery in legal proceedings.

World-wide …

Most nations also regulate use of

electronic messaging and electronic
records retention in similar fashion as
the United States. The most common
regulations related to IM at work involve
the need to produce archived business
communications to satisfy government
or judicial requests under law. Many
instant messaging communications fall
into the category of business
communications that must be archived
and retrievable.

Security and archiving

In the early 2000s, a new class of IT
security provider emerged to provide
remedies for the risks and liabilities
faced by corporations who chose to use
IM for business communications. The IM
security providers created new products
to be installed in corporate networks for
the purpose of archiving, content-
scanning, and security-scanning IM
traffic moving in and out of the
corporation. Similar to the e-mail filtering
vendors, the IM security providers focus
on the risks and liabilities described
above.

With rapid adoption of IM in the

workplace, demand for IM security
products began to grow in the mid-
2000s. By 2007, the preferred platform
for the purchase of security software had
become the "computer appliance",
according to IDC, who estimated that by
2008, 80% of network security products
would be delivered via an appliance.[32]

By 2014 however, the level of safety

offered by instant messengers was still
extremely poor. According to a scorecard
made by the Electronic Frontier
Foundation, only 7 out of 39 instant
messengers received a perfect score,
whereas the most popular instant
messengers at the time only attained a
score of 2 out of 7.[33][34] A number of
studies have shown that IM services are
quite vulnerable for providing user
privacy.[35][36]

User base
This article's factual accuracy may be
compromised due to out-of-date information.
Learn more

More than 100 million users …

 Instant
messenger Company Usage
client

Discord Discord Inc. 250 million users (May 2019)[37]

eBuddy
eBuddy 250 million users (September 2011)[38]
XMS

Facebook Facebook, 900 million active users (April 2016),[39] 1.3 billion monthly active
Messenger Inc. users (September 2017)[40]

iMessage Apple Inc. 140 million users (June 2012)[41]

53 million users (June 2020)

Jio
JioChat [42]
Platforms

Kik Kik
300 million users (May 2016)[43]
Messenger Interactive

Naver
Line 217 million monthly active users (2016)[44]
Corporation

300 million monthly active users (5 June 2019),[45] 1.55 billion

Microsoft
Skype registered users (2019),[46] 4.9 million daily active users (2 March
Corporation
2014),[47] 34 million peak online (February 2012).[48]

Snapchat Snap Inc. 301 million monthly active users (2016)[49]

Telegram
Telegram Messenger 400 million monthly active users (April 2020)[50]
LLP

Tencent
Tencent
Holdings 823 million monthly active users (July 2019)[51]
QQ
Limited

260 million monthly active users (January 2019),[52] 1.169 billion

Viber Rakuten
registered users (March 2020)[53]

Tencent
WeChat Holdings 1132.7 million monthly active users (Q2 '2019)[54]
Limited

1200 million monthly active users (January 2017),[55] 2 billion

Facebook,
WhatsApp registered users (12 February 2020),[56] 500 million daily active
Inc.
users (March 2019).[57]

ShareChat Mohalla 60 million monthly active users (January 2019)[58]

 Tech
Private
Limited

Other platforms …

Instant messenger client Company Usage

BlackBerry Messenger BlackBerry 91 million total users (October 2014)[59]

Hike Messenger Hike Messenger 70 million active users (October 2015)[60]

6.5 million users active daily (majority in

Gadu-Gadu GG Network S.A.
Poland) (June 2010)[61]

IBM Sametime IBM Corp. 20 million users (February 2006)[62]

ICQ ICQ LLC. 11 million total users (July 2014)[63]

IMVU IMVU, inc. 1 million users (June 2007)[64]

5.5 million monthly unique users (August

Paltalk Paltalk.com
2013)[65]

Signal Signal Foundation ?

XMPP (Protocol used by XMPP Standards

1200+ million (September 2011)[66]
multiple clients) Foundation

TeamNote TeamNote ?

Closed services and such with

unclear activity
…
 Instant messenger
Company Usage
client

AIM AOL, Inc Closed in December 2017

MXit Lifestyle (Pty)

MXit Closed in September 2016
Ltd.[67]

Windows Live Closed in April 2013, China in October

Microsoft Corporation
Messenger 2014

Xfire Xfire, Inc. Closed in June 2015

Yahoo! Messenger Yahoo!, Inc. Closed in July 2018

RTC rtcim.com 10 million users

See also
Terms
Ambient awareness
Communications protocol
Mass collaboration
Message-oriented middleware
Operator messaging
Social media
Text messaging
 Unified communications / Messaging
Lists
Comparison of instant messaging
clients
Comparison of instant messaging
protocols
Other
Code Shikara (Computer worm)

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network.

External links
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