The Rise and Fall of Instant Messengers [Infographic]

A timeline of the growth and decline of instant messengers.

Internet communication has come a long way since the first emails and instant messages. For many people, social networks rule the day — but how has instant messaging grown in tandem with their rise? An infographic from WhoIsHostingThis.com looks at the history of the IM.

First came ICQ, a product from Israeli company Mirabilis, which launched in 1996. ICQ was acquired by AOL in 1998, but despite being the first and oldest still operating, its user base never grew above the 50 million mark, according to the infographic.

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