Instead, it faded further and further from relevance.
Untethered from their computers, internet users shifted to a range of messaging apps and social networks like Facebook and Twitter.ĪIM, with a brand recognized by millions, could have capitalized on this shift and emerged as a lead player in the billion-dollar messaging space. Related: In memoriam: 13 tech products we lostĪ decade after AIM launched, Apple kicked off the smartphone era with the release of the original iPhone. The product earned a coveted spot in pop culture, making cameos in You've Got Mail and Sex and the City.īut the service that defined the internet for a generation of users failed to evolve with them. Perhaps more than any other product, AIM helped establish the internet as a place to hang out rather than being a simple utility.ĪIM offered a platform for people to express themselves with embarrassing screen names, profiles filled with colorful fonts and emotional lyrics, and as many messages as you could send before someone in your house kicked you offline.
When AIM launched in 1997, using the World Wide Web required a desktop computer with a clunky dial-up connection that tied up the phone lines. The news marks the end of an era for anyone who came of age with the internet in the late 90s and early 2000s.
AIM will officially shut down on December 15 after 20 years in service, its parent company announced Friday.
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