ICQ is an instant messaging client that allows users to find and communicate with friends. It was the first to use a graphical user interface and unique identification numbers (UINs). America Online acquired ICQ in 1998 for $407 million. ICQ still exists but is no longer the dominant messaging client.
ICQ is an instant messaging client, not unlike AIM, MSN Messenger or Google Talk. ICQ isn’t actually an abbreviation, the name is instead a play on words, “I’m looking for you”, referring to how ICQ can be used to find old or new friends and communicate with them.
Instant messaging has been around in one form or another since the early 1970s. In this era people logged on to a central computer, running an operating system like UNIX, to work, post messages, or socialize. The instant messaging services on these older systems sometimes communicate directly between two people and sometimes use a central server. Over time this form of instant messaging has become less popular, although some forms, such as Internet Relay Chat (IRC), remained very popular until the advent of modern messaging and still have sizable followings.
America Online’s predecessor, Quantum Link, adopted its own form of instant messaging between users. And later, when America Online was born, America Online Instant Messaging was part of that service. This first AIM was not, strictly speaking, a graphical client, but included many of the features known today.
In 1996, an Israeli company called Mirabilis released its instant messaging product – ICQ. Mirabilis was mainly financed by one of the fathers of the founder, as well as other small investors. The company relied very little on traditional marketing but relied on the viral effect when customers told their friends about it and their friends in turn told their friends.
ICQ was an innovator in instant messaging. It was the first instant messaging client to truly use a graphical user interface (GUI), and was easy for almost anyone to install and use. There was a time when ICQ was by far the dominant instant messaging client in existence and for many companies during the dot-com years it was a preferred mode of communication between them and their customers.
Instead of using unique screen identities chosen by the user, as AIM uses, or using the user’s email address, as MSN Messenger and Google Talk use, ICQ has instead created a unique identification number (UIN) for each user. This allows an ICQ user to change every piece of information about their account – username, email address, real name, city of origin – and still have the same primary identification. Since UIN numbers increase sequentially as new users are added, in some circles the length of a person’s ICQ number is regarded as a sign of “street credit” online. A user with a five-digit UIN, for example, is obviously an early adopter, as he was one of the first 100,000 users. Five- and six-digit UINs are often seen for sale on eBay, allowing new ICQ users to acquire an older UIN.
In 1997, America Online released its graphical instant messenger, AIM. In 1998, just two years after ICQ’s creation, America Online acquired the program from Mirabilis for $407 million, despite having no income. This allowed America Online to have virtual hegemony over instant messaging until Google Talk and MSN Messenger began to capture market share.
ICQ still exists and is still updated regularly. The client has been upgraded to modern messaging standards and now has features like smileys, multi-user chat, email support, SMS functionality and file transfer. Due in part to a fairly large problem with spam and aggressive marketing campaigns from AIM, Google Talk and MSN Messenger, all also associated with very popular existing services, ICQ is no longer the dominant messaging client. While it continues to survive, and perhaps innovate once more, it remains in a state of relative dormancy for now.
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