If you believe comments made recently in discussion boards and blogs across the Internet, search giant Google is developing an instant messaging initiative.
Source Internet News.com
Industry Jabbers About Google's IM Product
By Sean Michael Kerner
If you believe comments made recently in discussion boards and blogs across the Internet, search giant Google is developing an instant messaging initiative.
The gist of the speculation is that in addition to leveraging its existing assets and expertise in search technologies, IM would allow Google to complete a communication platform that includes Gmail (its Web mail system) and Orkut (its community networking portal). Reports also indicate that Google's IM platform and client would be based on the open source Jabber protocol.
Google officials were unavailable for comment to either confirm or deny the rumor.
The Jabber Software Foundation (JSF), however, was available for comment. Peter Saint-Andre, executive director of the JSF, told InstantMessagingPlanet.com that the JSF always welcomes implementations and deployments of the Jabber protocols, which is also known as the Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP).
"It is all speculation at this point, but if Google should choose to offer an IM service based on Jabber/XMPP technologies, they would be a welcome partner in the Jabber community's continuing efforts to ensure interoperability in instant messaging," Saint-Andre said.
He went on to detail that many high-profile companies such as IBM, HP, SUN and Oracle have already adopted Jabber/XMPP technologies, though he admits that the Google adoption would have a different sort of impact. "Google's impact would perhaps be more dramatic as their offering is likely an open, consumer-oriented service and their brand recognition is obviously at historic levels," Saint-Andre said.
Industry Open to Google's Entry
Members of the instant messaging community, including the leading open source instant messaging client implementation Gaim, are enthusiastic about the opportunities that Google may bring to Jabber/XMPP.
"I would love to see Google get involved in the IM world," Gaim lead developer Sean Egan told InstantMessagingPlanet.com. "They have enough pull on the Internet to possibly convert people en masse to Jabber, which is what Jabber needs. Gaim and plenty of other clients already support Jabber, so Google's IM users would have a wide selection of clients as soon as it launched."
"This could potentially be what brings Jabber into the eye of the general public," Egan said.
Part of the wild speculation surrounding the Google IM rumor also supposes that beyond being a potential tipping point for Jabber, a Jabber-based Google IM platform would supplant the already established public IM clouds of AOL, MSN and Yahoo.
Radicati Group Market Analyst Genelle Hung, however, doesn't buy into that hype despite the support a Google IM platform would inevitably get. "There would probably be a lot of grass-roots support — especially with consumers being unhappy with the 'big 3' [AOL, MSN, Yahoo!] for constantly changing their protocols and thus causing third-party clients such as Trillian and Gaim to break," Hung said. "An IM client based on open standards and APIs might be just what is needed to push further for IM standards and interoperability. However, I cannot believe that everyone on the other clients would hop over to the Google IM service anytime in the near future (should it happen) as IM is one of the "stickiest" and most loyalty-inducing features on the market today."
Jabber Software Foundation's Saint-Andre also agrees that a Jabber-based Google IM product wouldn't force the other IM services into nonexistence. He said he also sees a potential for industry standardization based a Jabber/XMPP Google service.
"In the short run, it is difficult to see why the IM services provided by AOL, Microsoft and Yahoo would disappear simply because Google started its own IM service," Saint-Andre said. "On the other hand, Google entered the search engine market at a time when Yahoo! dominated a very crowded market. Moreover, the existence of an open IM service offered by a company of Google's stature would combine with the large number of enterprise deployments to put significant pressure on the existing consumer services to offer true server-to-server interoperability."
Good for Jabber, Bad for Standardization?
IM Security and management vendor FaceTime Communications sees the situation somewhat differently. FaceTime Chief Technology Officer and Vice President of Products Jonathan Christensen said he believes that the recent move by the MSN, AOL and Yahoo! to allow for interoperable enterprise gateways is a simple fact that should not be overlooked. Christensen explained that big three vendors have now made a move to standardize on SIP/SIMPLE and open source Jabber protocol XMPP is not part of that equation. SIMPLE, Christensen argues, already has a lot traction, owing to its SIP roots, that cannot be overlooked.
"If Google were to announce and run a Jabber-based system , rather than a tipping point for Jabber it would just be another point of fragmentation in the marketplace and another force potentially slowing consolidation in the industry," Christensen said.
That said, Christensen does recognize the fact that Jabber Inc has recently announced that it was working on providing an XMPP to SIP Gateway, to allow for interoperability on IBM's Lotus IM product (SameTime). It's unclear and unknown at this point if Google would go with a commercial implementation from Jabber Inc or work with the open source version of Jabber from the JSF.
The Unknown Google Stepchild
Outside of speculation, there is a currently little known reality about Google's current IM capabilities. It actually already has an IM tool and it's publically avaialbale — it's not even a Google Beta or a Google Labs project. Google though its acquisition of Blogger last year also acquired a company called Picassa, which also offer an instant messaging service. The IM technology is called Hello and is currently focused on instant messaging between people to share pictures and now to post pictures to a blog. Hello is currently available only for Windows and uses a proprietary protocol.
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Tuesday, August 31, 2004
Wednesday, August 25, 2004
AOL Instant Messaging Survey Lights The Way For New Marketing Opportunities
Instant messaging (IM) is now a mainstream communication platform for Web users, according to new data collected by America Online and Opinion Research Corporation, and the new usage figures are prompting the world's largest Internet Service Provider to aggressively market the Instant Messaging client as a unique opportunity for marketers.
The second annual instant messaging survey, which covered all IM platforms, queried 4,500 respondents in the top 20 U.S. markets. It found that 59 percent of Internet users use IM, 43 percent of employed IM users use it at work, 29 percent of IM users say they send as many or more IMs than e-mails per day, and 20 percent of IM users send mobile IMs or SMS text messages through a personal mobile device.
The survey also notes that IM now has deep penetration among all age groups. Ninety percent of online 13- to-21-year-olds are using IM, followed by 71 percent of online 22- to-34-year-olds, 55 percent of online 35- to-54-year-olds, and an astonishing 48 percent of online over-55s.
Strong usage has prompted AOL to develop unique marketing innovations for the IM client, which remain free to both members and non-members.
Its newest product, which AOL Media Networks Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Michael Barrett calls "the secret sauce" of the AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) marketing program, is called AIM Expressions. AIM Expressions is a service that was only available to AOL members, but with the launch of 5.9 in September, all AIM users will be able to participate. However, Expressions is a subscription service, priced at $1.95 a month, or $9.95 for annual subscriptions.
For marketers, AIM Expressions is a new interactive sponsorship opportunity that offers users the choice to decorate their AIM message window and client page with brand-related images or artwork, called "skins." "Skins" are customizable; advertisers can choose to include links to related Web sites, downloads, or game pages. Sponsored Expressions will also be free to all AIM users, requiring no subscription to use.
In addition to "skins," brands also can create personal avatars, called "super-buddies," which act like interactive buddy icons during conversation. For example, for the M&M's Expression, users can choose from one of several different colored M&M super-buddies, each with their own distinct characteristics and idiosyncrasies. The sponsorship was developed by AOL's creative department in conjunction with interactive shop Beyond Interactive, and the client.
According to Barrett, AIM Expressions can be "a powerful opportunity for marketers, because long after a campaign is over, [the expression and the character] are still part of the library of AIM Expressions." He added that any user who wants to take on another user's Expression can do so by simply clicking on the skin. Sponsored Expressions are also free to users.
Because AIM Expressions is completely opt-in, Barrett said there's no danger of bombarding users with messages. "[AIM Expressions] is hand-raiser, permission marketing," he said, noting that "if consumer appeal is low, consumer adoption will be low."
Barrett conceded that AOL is still selling advertising that skews to a mostly teen/young adult audience. He said AOL has yet to incorporate targeting into its inventory offerings; dayparting to workers during the day and a younger crowd at night is currently the best example.
For the future, he said AOL will look into targeting by IP address, industry, and geographic as well. Barrett also added that AOL will be working with its recent acquisition, interactive marketing firm Advertising.com, on new strategies, but would not go into specifics. "To be honest, we were as excited as we think marketers will be with the information [from the survey]," Barrett said, adding that AOL will continue to work on new offerings for marketers.
The AIM client currently offers three other advertising opportunities as well. The first is the text on the AIM Today start page, which offers content sponsorships to news and entertainment news providers. There is a banner on that page, and then there is the actual banner on the AIM client page, which contains users' buddy lists. This was recently video-enabled for ads of up to 30 seconds in length, and is frequency-capped at one per session, per day. ESPN, MTV, NBC, Ford, DaimlerChrysler, and American Express have bought 30-second spots.
Takeovers are another sponsorship opportunity, according to Barrett, and are customizable. For example, for the "Garfield" movie launch, there were pawprints in the background of the AIM today page.
AIM Expressions "super-buddies" are currently in beta. The product launches full-time in September with AIM 5.9. Current AIM Expressions advertisers are Nike, M&Ms, Chicklets, Snapple, the Wall Street Journal Online, and movies "A Cinderella Story," "The Punisher," "13 Going on 30," and "The Last Samurai."
The second annual instant messaging survey, which covered all IM platforms, queried 4,500 respondents in the top 20 U.S. markets. It found that 59 percent of Internet users use IM, 43 percent of employed IM users use it at work, 29 percent of IM users say they send as many or more IMs than e-mails per day, and 20 percent of IM users send mobile IMs or SMS text messages through a personal mobile device.
The survey also notes that IM now has deep penetration among all age groups. Ninety percent of online 13- to-21-year-olds are using IM, followed by 71 percent of online 22- to-34-year-olds, 55 percent of online 35- to-54-year-olds, and an astonishing 48 percent of online over-55s.
Strong usage has prompted AOL to develop unique marketing innovations for the IM client, which remain free to both members and non-members.
Its newest product, which AOL Media Networks Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Michael Barrett calls "the secret sauce" of the AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) marketing program, is called AIM Expressions. AIM Expressions is a service that was only available to AOL members, but with the launch of 5.9 in September, all AIM users will be able to participate. However, Expressions is a subscription service, priced at $1.95 a month, or $9.95 for annual subscriptions.
For marketers, AIM Expressions is a new interactive sponsorship opportunity that offers users the choice to decorate their AIM message window and client page with brand-related images or artwork, called "skins." "Skins" are customizable; advertisers can choose to include links to related Web sites, downloads, or game pages. Sponsored Expressions will also be free to all AIM users, requiring no subscription to use.
In addition to "skins," brands also can create personal avatars, called "super-buddies," which act like interactive buddy icons during conversation. For example, for the M&M's Expression, users can choose from one of several different colored M&M super-buddies, each with their own distinct characteristics and idiosyncrasies. The sponsorship was developed by AOL's creative department in conjunction with interactive shop Beyond Interactive, and the client.
According to Barrett, AIM Expressions can be "a powerful opportunity for marketers, because long after a campaign is over, [the expression and the character] are still part of the library of AIM Expressions." He added that any user who wants to take on another user's Expression can do so by simply clicking on the skin. Sponsored Expressions are also free to users.
Because AIM Expressions is completely opt-in, Barrett said there's no danger of bombarding users with messages. "[AIM Expressions] is hand-raiser, permission marketing," he said, noting that "if consumer appeal is low, consumer adoption will be low."
Barrett conceded that AOL is still selling advertising that skews to a mostly teen/young adult audience. He said AOL has yet to incorporate targeting into its inventory offerings; dayparting to workers during the day and a younger crowd at night is currently the best example.
For the future, he said AOL will look into targeting by IP address, industry, and geographic as well. Barrett also added that AOL will be working with its recent acquisition, interactive marketing firm Advertising.com, on new strategies, but would not go into specifics. "To be honest, we were as excited as we think marketers will be with the information [from the survey]," Barrett said, adding that AOL will continue to work on new offerings for marketers.
The AIM client currently offers three other advertising opportunities as well. The first is the text on the AIM Today start page, which offers content sponsorships to news and entertainment news providers. There is a banner on that page, and then there is the actual banner on the AIM client page, which contains users' buddy lists. This was recently video-enabled for ads of up to 30 seconds in length, and is frequency-capped at one per session, per day. ESPN, MTV, NBC, Ford, DaimlerChrysler, and American Express have bought 30-second spots.
Takeovers are another sponsorship opportunity, according to Barrett, and are customizable. For example, for the "Garfield" movie launch, there were pawprints in the background of the AIM today page.
AIM Expressions "super-buddies" are currently in beta. The product launches full-time in September with AIM 5.9. Current AIM Expressions advertisers are Nike, M&Ms, Chicklets, Snapple, the Wall Street Journal Online, and movies "A Cinderella Story," "The Punisher," "13 Going on 30," and "The Last Samurai."
America Online Inc.'s Second Annual Instant Messaging Trends
America Online Inc.'s Second Annual Instant Messaging Trends Survey Shows Instant Messaging Has Gone Mainstream
Teens and Young Adults Still Dominate But At-Work and Mobile Usage Is Growing Rapidly
Internet Users on High-Speed Connections Send More Instant Messages
Customizing "Away" Messages Remains Hot
55 and Older Say Photo Sharing is Important
New York, Miami and Chicago Are Most Active IM Cities; Dallas/Fort Worth Residents and San Franciscans Are Most Likely to IM from Work; Philadelphia Wins 'Water Cooler Award': Most Likely to Gossip about Co-Workers via Instant Message
DULLES, VA - August 24, 2004 - Teens and young adults still lead the way on instant messaging (IM), but usage in the workplace and on mobile phones and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) is on the rise, according to a new survey from America Online Inc. The second annual survey on instant messaging use in America, released today by the world's leading interactive services company, found instant messaging has gone mainstream, with preferences and habits as unique and diverse as its users:
* Nearly all surveyed teens and young adults (90 percent) engage in instant messaging, but IM is not the teen phenomenon it was once considered. An amazing 48 percent of those aged 55+ now use instant messaging, with photo sharing their favorite feature. Seven out of ten 22 - 34 year-olds and 55 percent of adults aged 35 - 54 use IM at home, at work or on any number of mobile devices.
* At-work use is gaining momentum with 27 percent of all IM users saying they use IM in the workplace - a 71 percent increase over last year. Fully 43 percent of employed IM users say they use desktop IM to communicate quickly in the workplace.
* Nineteen percent of IM users now send IMs or SMS text messages from mobile phones and PDAs, as compared with ten percent that did so last year. Thirty-two percent of these mobile messengers say they stay in touch with co-workers via mobile IM or SMS text messages while on business travel.
* The vast majority of those surveyed send IMs to keep in touch with family or friends (90 percent). Others use IM to share photos (28 percent), set up weekend or evening activities (22 percent), play games (14 percent) and get to know dates better (11 percent).
"Our second annual survey reveals that instant messaging has become part of the fabric of our daily lives, enabling all the roles we play from student to best friend, and from parent to busy professional," said Edmund Fish, senior vice president and general manager, Desktop Messaging, America Online. "It's clear that instant messaging has now gone mainstream; it's helping people do everything from spark new relationships to increase their productivity at work. We at AOL are extremely pleased to provide people everywhere with IM services that are reliable, easy to use and connected to a thriving global community."
Nationwide and around the world, instant messaging use is growing, with more than 7 billion [1] instant messages being sent every day worldwide, according to IDC. ComScore Media Metrix [2] reports that there are 250 million people across the globe - and nearly 80 million Americans - who regularly use instant messaging as a quick and convenient communications tool.
While more than 61 percent of those surveyed said they use more than one instant messaging application, AOL remains the leader, with 52 percent of users selecting AOL's instant messaging services, including the AOL(r) Buddy List(r) feature within the America Online(r) subscriber service, the free AOL(r) Instant Messenger(tm) (AIM(r)) service (http://www.aim.com) and the global ICQ(r) instant messaging service (http://www.icq.com).
The AOL instant messaging trends survey of nearly 5,000 respondents ages 13 and over was conducted in partnership with Opinion Research Corporation from June 7-17 and July 26-28, 2004.
Top 10 Cities and AOL's First Annual IM Awards
This year's survey includes a listing of America's top ten cities for IM usage and a number of "awards" for unique instant messaging habits of IM users in various cities.
According to the survey, the top ten markets for instant messaging are:
1. New York, NY 2. Miami, FL 3. Chicago, IL 4. Philadelphia, PA 5. Orlando, FL 6. Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX 7. Atlanta, GA 8. Washington, DC 9. Los Angeles, CA 10. Houston, TX
The AOL IM Awards include:
The Water Cooler Award: IM users in Philadelphia are most likely to gossip or complain about both their co-workers and their boss via IM (both 27 percent).
The Fastest Fingers Award: In New York and Dallas, IM users send the most instant messages per day (average 17 IMs per person).
The Job Jumper Award: In Tampa, IM users are most likely to send instant messages from work to look for new jobs (24 percent).
The 'An Affair to Forget' Award: IM users in Philadelphia are most likely to maintain multiple screen names to avoid an ex or a bad date (17 percent).
The Clark Kent Award: In Washington, DC and Minneapolis, IM users are most likely to have multiple screen names in order to maintain an alter-ego (20 percent).
The Chatty Charlie Award: IM users are the most "talkative" in Philadelphia and Miami, with an average of two instant messaging conversations going on at once.
The 'Come Here Often?' Award: In Atlanta and Sacramento, IM users are the most likely to use instant messaging to get to know dates or potential dates better (15 percent).
The Schoolhouse Rock Award: IM users in Atlanta are most likely to send mobile instant messages from a classroom or on campus (34 percent).
The Romance@Work Award: In Washington, DC, IM users are most likely to flirt or ask for or accept a date by instant message from the workplace (39 percent).
The Digital Don Juan Award: IM users in Cleveland are most likely to use their mobile phone or PDA for romance (56 percent). In fact, 31 percent have flirted and 38 percent have asked for or accepted a date via a mobile message.
Other Key IM Findings: Overall findings from the survey include:
* IM Gaining on or Surpassing Email for Many. Twenty-nine percent say that they send as many - if not more - IMs than they do e-mails, and the younger users are, the more likely they are to favor IM. Half (49 percent) of teens and young adults (ages 13-21) say they send more instant messages than e-mails, while only six percent of those 55 and older say they do.
* Teens and Young Adults Still Lead the Way: Ninety percent of Internet-savvy teens and young adults say they send instant messages, and 71 percent of those ages 22-34 say the same. America Online dominates the teen and young adult population with more than four out of five (81 percent) using the AIM service or the AOL Buddy List feature to send instant messages.
* High-Speed Boosts IM Usage: More than seven out of ten (71 percent) say they access the Internet at home using a high-speed connection, and 29 percent of those with high-speed access say this connectivity leads them to spend more time instant messaging.
* Variety is the Spice of "Away" Messages: One in four (25 percent) IM users changes his or her "away" message at least once a week. Nearly one in three (31 percent) reads other people's "away" messages every time they log on or every time a new one appears.
* Photo-Sharing Leads Features: The most important IM features nationwide are photo sharing (39 percent), customization (36 percent) and file sharing (32 percent). New Yorkers find the "away" message to be the most important feature (39 percent).
* IM Screen Name as Calling Card: When meeting someone new, those ages 13-21 are as likely to give out their IM screen names (52 percent) as their e-mail addresses (53 percent). This group is also as likely to use instant messaging (33 percent) as mobile phones (38 percent) to keep in touch with friends. Instant messaging is now tied with mobile phones (36 percent) as the preferred way to stay in touch with friends over the summer.
* Multiple Identities: More than one out of three (36 percent) IM users say they have more than one screen name. The majority (59 percent) says they do so to keep their groups of contacts separate, such as friends, family or co-workers. Thirty-one percent say they do so in order to monitor who's online without letting certain people know they are available, while 12 percent say they use alternative accounts to manage their online dating activities.
IM in the Workplace According to Osterman Research, 24 million instant messaging users in the U.S. log on from work, and 58 percent (nearly 14 million) use the AIM service. The AOL instant messaging trends survey revealed that nearly three out of four (71 percent) at-work IM users feel that instant messaging has had a positive impact on their work lives. The impact is even higher in Denver, where 88 percent of IM users maintain that their day-to-day business lives have benefited from instant messaging. More at-work highlights from this survey include:
* Over the Cubicle: The majority sends instant messages while at work to communicate with colleagues (70 percent), while 63 percent say they send IMs to get answers and make business decisions and 34 percent say they use instant messaging to interact with clients or customers. More than one in ten (11 percent) say they have used IM at work to avoid a potentially difficult in-person conversation.
* Checking In from Work: Nearly two-thirds (62 percent) of at-work IM users say they also send occasional instant messages during their workday to check-in with family and friends, while 22 percent of working parents surveyed say that IM provides them with peace of mind by enabling them to quickly touch base with their children from the office.
* IM a Flirt: More than one in five (21 percent) say they have flirted via instant message from work, and denizens of San Francisco are the most likely (47 percent) to send instant messages from the workplace for business, family or social purposes.
Mobile IM According to today's survey, 19 percent of IM users now send instant and SMS text messages from their mobile phones and PDAs, compared with just ten percent that did so last year. The AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) service is the most popular instant messaging application available on mobile devices, with 35 percent of mobile messengers choosing to use the AIM service or AOL Buddy List feature on their cell phones and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs).
* IM to SMS - Watch Out!: While SMS text messaging still dominates in the mobile messaging arena, 32 percent of all mobile messengers now use an instant messaging service on their mobile device instead of, or in addition to, sending SMS text messages. Men are slightly more likely than women to use mobile instant messaging (38 percent vs. 28 percent).
* Watch the Elbows: More than one in three (36 percent) mobile messengers have sent mobile IMs or SMS text messages from a mobile device in crowded public transportation, such as the bus or subway. Sporting events (25 percent), busy meetings (23 percent), campus classrooms (22 percent) and hospitals (12 percent) are other top places where mobile users find it convenient to send mobile messages.
* Work Connection: One in three (32 percent) mobile messengers send mobile IMs or SMS text messages to keep in touch with the office and make business decisions while on travel for work, and nearly three in four (74 percent) send mobile messages when they don't have time for a phone conversation.
* Pickup Line: Nearly one in three (31 percent) mobile messengers say they have used mobile IM or SMS text messaging for romance, including flirting (25 percent) and asking for or accepting a date (14 percent). Meanwhile, three percent have sent a mobile instant message to break up with a boyfriend or girlfriend and fully ten percent admit to having sent a mobile message while on a bad date.
Survey Methodology: Survey results are based on 4,510 respondents, 13 years and older, in the top 20 markets around the country. The survey was conducted June 7-17 and July 26-28, 2004 by Opinion Research Corporation www.opinionresearch.com on behalf of America Online. At-work instant messaging findings are based on those who work within organizations of 500 employees or less. The survey rankings are a compilation of several key factors, including the current percentage of instant message users; the number of people on their contact list; the number of instant messages sent per day; the average number of instant messaging conversations at one time; the number who customize their IM application; the number who have more than one screen name; the number who change their away messages; and the percentage who send more instant messages than e-mails.
About America Online, Inc.
America Online, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. Based in Dulles, Virginia, America Online is the world's leader in interactive services, Web brands, Internet technologies and e-commerce services.
[1] IDC Worldwide Enterprise Instant Messaging Applications 2003 Competitive Analysis: Putting IM To Work
[2] comScore Media Metrix, June, 2004
Contact Info:
Erin Gifford, America Online, Inc.
703-265-7285
Teens and Young Adults Still Dominate But At-Work and Mobile Usage Is Growing Rapidly
Internet Users on High-Speed Connections Send More Instant Messages
Customizing "Away" Messages Remains Hot
55 and Older Say Photo Sharing is Important
New York, Miami and Chicago Are Most Active IM Cities; Dallas/Fort Worth Residents and San Franciscans Are Most Likely to IM from Work; Philadelphia Wins 'Water Cooler Award': Most Likely to Gossip about Co-Workers via Instant Message
DULLES, VA - August 24, 2004 - Teens and young adults still lead the way on instant messaging (IM), but usage in the workplace and on mobile phones and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) is on the rise, according to a new survey from America Online Inc. The second annual survey on instant messaging use in America, released today by the world's leading interactive services company, found instant messaging has gone mainstream, with preferences and habits as unique and diverse as its users:
* Nearly all surveyed teens and young adults (90 percent) engage in instant messaging, but IM is not the teen phenomenon it was once considered. An amazing 48 percent of those aged 55+ now use instant messaging, with photo sharing their favorite feature. Seven out of ten 22 - 34 year-olds and 55 percent of adults aged 35 - 54 use IM at home, at work or on any number of mobile devices.
* At-work use is gaining momentum with 27 percent of all IM users saying they use IM in the workplace - a 71 percent increase over last year. Fully 43 percent of employed IM users say they use desktop IM to communicate quickly in the workplace.
* Nineteen percent of IM users now send IMs or SMS text messages from mobile phones and PDAs, as compared with ten percent that did so last year. Thirty-two percent of these mobile messengers say they stay in touch with co-workers via mobile IM or SMS text messages while on business travel.
* The vast majority of those surveyed send IMs to keep in touch with family or friends (90 percent). Others use IM to share photos (28 percent), set up weekend or evening activities (22 percent), play games (14 percent) and get to know dates better (11 percent).
"Our second annual survey reveals that instant messaging has become part of the fabric of our daily lives, enabling all the roles we play from student to best friend, and from parent to busy professional," said Edmund Fish, senior vice president and general manager, Desktop Messaging, America Online. "It's clear that instant messaging has now gone mainstream; it's helping people do everything from spark new relationships to increase their productivity at work. We at AOL are extremely pleased to provide people everywhere with IM services that are reliable, easy to use and connected to a thriving global community."
Nationwide and around the world, instant messaging use is growing, with more than 7 billion [1] instant messages being sent every day worldwide, according to IDC. ComScore Media Metrix [2] reports that there are 250 million people across the globe - and nearly 80 million Americans - who regularly use instant messaging as a quick and convenient communications tool.
While more than 61 percent of those surveyed said they use more than one instant messaging application, AOL remains the leader, with 52 percent of users selecting AOL's instant messaging services, including the AOL(r) Buddy List(r) feature within the America Online(r) subscriber service, the free AOL(r) Instant Messenger(tm) (AIM(r)) service (http://www.aim.com) and the global ICQ(r) instant messaging service (http://www.icq.com).
The AOL instant messaging trends survey of nearly 5,000 respondents ages 13 and over was conducted in partnership with Opinion Research Corporation from June 7-17 and July 26-28, 2004.
Top 10 Cities and AOL's First Annual IM Awards
This year's survey includes a listing of America's top ten cities for IM usage and a number of "awards" for unique instant messaging habits of IM users in various cities.
According to the survey, the top ten markets for instant messaging are:
1. New York, NY 2. Miami, FL 3. Chicago, IL 4. Philadelphia, PA 5. Orlando, FL 6. Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX 7. Atlanta, GA 8. Washington, DC 9. Los Angeles, CA 10. Houston, TX
The AOL IM Awards include:
The Water Cooler Award: IM users in Philadelphia are most likely to gossip or complain about both their co-workers and their boss via IM (both 27 percent).
The Fastest Fingers Award: In New York and Dallas, IM users send the most instant messages per day (average 17 IMs per person).
The Job Jumper Award: In Tampa, IM users are most likely to send instant messages from work to look for new jobs (24 percent).
The 'An Affair to Forget' Award: IM users in Philadelphia are most likely to maintain multiple screen names to avoid an ex or a bad date (17 percent).
The Clark Kent Award: In Washington, DC and Minneapolis, IM users are most likely to have multiple screen names in order to maintain an alter-ego (20 percent).
The Chatty Charlie Award: IM users are the most "talkative" in Philadelphia and Miami, with an average of two instant messaging conversations going on at once.
The 'Come Here Often?' Award: In Atlanta and Sacramento, IM users are the most likely to use instant messaging to get to know dates or potential dates better (15 percent).
The Schoolhouse Rock Award: IM users in Atlanta are most likely to send mobile instant messages from a classroom or on campus (34 percent).
The Romance@Work Award: In Washington, DC, IM users are most likely to flirt or ask for or accept a date by instant message from the workplace (39 percent).
The Digital Don Juan Award: IM users in Cleveland are most likely to use their mobile phone or PDA for romance (56 percent). In fact, 31 percent have flirted and 38 percent have asked for or accepted a date via a mobile message.
Other Key IM Findings: Overall findings from the survey include:
* IM Gaining on or Surpassing Email for Many. Twenty-nine percent say that they send as many - if not more - IMs than they do e-mails, and the younger users are, the more likely they are to favor IM. Half (49 percent) of teens and young adults (ages 13-21) say they send more instant messages than e-mails, while only six percent of those 55 and older say they do.
* Teens and Young Adults Still Lead the Way: Ninety percent of Internet-savvy teens and young adults say they send instant messages, and 71 percent of those ages 22-34 say the same. America Online dominates the teen and young adult population with more than four out of five (81 percent) using the AIM service or the AOL Buddy List feature to send instant messages.
* High-Speed Boosts IM Usage: More than seven out of ten (71 percent) say they access the Internet at home using a high-speed connection, and 29 percent of those with high-speed access say this connectivity leads them to spend more time instant messaging.
* Variety is the Spice of "Away" Messages: One in four (25 percent) IM users changes his or her "away" message at least once a week. Nearly one in three (31 percent) reads other people's "away" messages every time they log on or every time a new one appears.
* Photo-Sharing Leads Features: The most important IM features nationwide are photo sharing (39 percent), customization (36 percent) and file sharing (32 percent). New Yorkers find the "away" message to be the most important feature (39 percent).
* IM Screen Name as Calling Card: When meeting someone new, those ages 13-21 are as likely to give out their IM screen names (52 percent) as their e-mail addresses (53 percent). This group is also as likely to use instant messaging (33 percent) as mobile phones (38 percent) to keep in touch with friends. Instant messaging is now tied with mobile phones (36 percent) as the preferred way to stay in touch with friends over the summer.
* Multiple Identities: More than one out of three (36 percent) IM users say they have more than one screen name. The majority (59 percent) says they do so to keep their groups of contacts separate, such as friends, family or co-workers. Thirty-one percent say they do so in order to monitor who's online without letting certain people know they are available, while 12 percent say they use alternative accounts to manage their online dating activities.
IM in the Workplace According to Osterman Research, 24 million instant messaging users in the U.S. log on from work, and 58 percent (nearly 14 million) use the AIM service. The AOL instant messaging trends survey revealed that nearly three out of four (71 percent) at-work IM users feel that instant messaging has had a positive impact on their work lives. The impact is even higher in Denver, where 88 percent of IM users maintain that their day-to-day business lives have benefited from instant messaging. More at-work highlights from this survey include:
* Over the Cubicle: The majority sends instant messages while at work to communicate with colleagues (70 percent), while 63 percent say they send IMs to get answers and make business decisions and 34 percent say they use instant messaging to interact with clients or customers. More than one in ten (11 percent) say they have used IM at work to avoid a potentially difficult in-person conversation.
* Checking In from Work: Nearly two-thirds (62 percent) of at-work IM users say they also send occasional instant messages during their workday to check-in with family and friends, while 22 percent of working parents surveyed say that IM provides them with peace of mind by enabling them to quickly touch base with their children from the office.
* IM a Flirt: More than one in five (21 percent) say they have flirted via instant message from work, and denizens of San Francisco are the most likely (47 percent) to send instant messages from the workplace for business, family or social purposes.
Mobile IM According to today's survey, 19 percent of IM users now send instant and SMS text messages from their mobile phones and PDAs, compared with just ten percent that did so last year. The AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) service is the most popular instant messaging application available on mobile devices, with 35 percent of mobile messengers choosing to use the AIM service or AOL Buddy List feature on their cell phones and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs).
* IM to SMS - Watch Out!: While SMS text messaging still dominates in the mobile messaging arena, 32 percent of all mobile messengers now use an instant messaging service on their mobile device instead of, or in addition to, sending SMS text messages. Men are slightly more likely than women to use mobile instant messaging (38 percent vs. 28 percent).
* Watch the Elbows: More than one in three (36 percent) mobile messengers have sent mobile IMs or SMS text messages from a mobile device in crowded public transportation, such as the bus or subway. Sporting events (25 percent), busy meetings (23 percent), campus classrooms (22 percent) and hospitals (12 percent) are other top places where mobile users find it convenient to send mobile messages.
* Work Connection: One in three (32 percent) mobile messengers send mobile IMs or SMS text messages to keep in touch with the office and make business decisions while on travel for work, and nearly three in four (74 percent) send mobile messages when they don't have time for a phone conversation.
* Pickup Line: Nearly one in three (31 percent) mobile messengers say they have used mobile IM or SMS text messaging for romance, including flirting (25 percent) and asking for or accepting a date (14 percent). Meanwhile, three percent have sent a mobile instant message to break up with a boyfriend or girlfriend and fully ten percent admit to having sent a mobile message while on a bad date.
Survey Methodology: Survey results are based on 4,510 respondents, 13 years and older, in the top 20 markets around the country. The survey was conducted June 7-17 and July 26-28, 2004 by Opinion Research Corporation www.opinionresearch.com on behalf of America Online. At-work instant messaging findings are based on those who work within organizations of 500 employees or less. The survey rankings are a compilation of several key factors, including the current percentage of instant message users; the number of people on their contact list; the number of instant messages sent per day; the average number of instant messaging conversations at one time; the number who customize their IM application; the number who have more than one screen name; the number who change their away messages; and the percentage who send more instant messages than e-mails.
About America Online, Inc.
America Online, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. Based in Dulles, Virginia, America Online is the world's leader in interactive services, Web brands, Internet technologies and e-commerce services.
[1] IDC Worldwide Enterprise Instant Messaging Applications 2003 Competitive Analysis: Putting IM To Work
[2] comScore Media Metrix, June, 2004
Contact Info:
Erin Gifford, America Online, Inc.
703-265-7285
Monday, August 09, 2004
AOL IM 'Away' message flaw deemed critical
Computer security companies are warning users of America Online Inc.'s Instant Messenger (AIM) software that a serious security hole in the product could allow remote attackers to execute malicious code on computers that run the popular instant messaging software.
Read this and more at IMFrame.com
Read this and more at IMFrame.com
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