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Keeping Non-Corporate Instant-Messaging Alive?

Posted by Cliff on from the communications-for-the-masses dept.

dc_cypher asks: "Soon after I read these two articles, I stumbled across a secure unified IM client powered by Bantu on a Sprint site. While many people are turning to electronic communications to enhance (and protect) their reachability in the midst of the recent terrorist activities, what can we do to keep these useful non-corporate alternatives from being legally and financially slaughtered, only to end up joining their file-sharing bretheren in the internet graveyard?"

1 of 26 comments (clear)

  1. IM != Cash Cow by Cow4263 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Simply put, all instant messaging platforms will lose money, or break even if lucky. I'm willing to bet that those ads they put in the clients (which are only there if the clients are wiling to have them) are worth just a little over nothing. I think AOL just likes having a monopoly on the whole Instant Message market, probably hoping to get some of those AIM accounts into full-fledged AOL accounts (I'd like to see some numbers on how many people actually 'upgrade' to AOL from their AIM screennames). When they bought up ICQ, that should have been a message to everyone that they just want all instant message traffic to go through their servers for whatever unknown reason.

    Anyway, I don't know if non-corpate IM protocals are economically viable at all, especially when ad banners are all but worthless these days.

    oh, fp :P