AIM Service Shows When U R There
AOL wants to make its AIM instant messaging service presence more ubiquitous on the Web, and it has joined forces with several popular social networking sites to make that happen.
Through these partnerships, consumers will be able to show their online status on Web sites, as well as give other AIM users one-click access to communicate with them.
The service, known as AIM Presence, is available free of charge and only requires a few lines of HTML code to implement. While AOL has offered the ability for Web sites to add a method to contact site owners through AIM for several years, the new service will offer actual status indicators for the first time.
Users will be able to see whether the person is online or off; available, idle or away; and at a computer or mobile.
"With the new AIM Presence program, we are taking this commitment to a deeper level, enabling everyone from bloggers and podcasters to small businesses to tap our network’s reach and connect with key audiences in real time," said Chamath Palihapitiya, vice president and general manager of AIM and ICQ.
Jupiter Research senior analyst Joe Wicox agreed. "The majority of small businesses are just a few employees. For operations that deliver services, accessibility is essential. Presence from the Web site can add vital accessibility," he said.
Willcox offered a hypothetical situation where a plumber has a Web site, but is constantly on the road and doesn't want to post his cell phone number. Instead, he could use the AIM service on his cell phone to stay in immediate contact with his customers.
AOL also announced partnerships with social networking sites including Facebook and LinkedIn, as well as fashion Web site Glam.com.
Facebook will integrate AIM Presence into its personal profile pages, and LinkedIn will do the same for its professional profile service.
Glam.com will also use the service on its user profiles and to give users a more personal shopping experience on the site. An "IM this" option will additionally be included from most shopping pages.
However, the biggest catch for AIM Presence may be AOL's deal to integrate the service into SixApart's blogging properties that include TypePad, LiveJournal and the blogging software Movable Type. The deal could be the widest implementation of the service as SixApart counts some 11 million users.
"Blogging provides another means of networking, whether personally or professionally," Wilcox noted. "AIM Presence would let other people know when the blogger is online, step up the level of interaction from comments."