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{{Short description|Cross-platform instant messaging system and VoIP client}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Infobox software {{Infobox software
| name = ICQ | name = ICQ
| logo = ] | logo = ICQNewlogo.svg
| logo size = 100px
| screenshot =
| screenshot =
| caption =
| caption =
| released = {{Start date|1996|11}}
| collapsible = no
| latest release version = ICQ 7.2.3 Build 3159
| author = ]
| latest release date = {{Start date and age|2010|10|25|df=yes}}
| developer = {{ubl | ] | ]}}
| operating system = ] <!--, ] no longer available http://download.icq.com/download/mac/--> ], ]s
| released = {{Start date and age|1996|11|15}}
| genre = ] ]
| discontinued = yes
| license = ] (])
| latest release version = 10.0.46867 (May 27, 2022)
| website =
| ver layout = simple
| latest release date =
| programming language = {{ubl | ] (]/{{zwsp}}]/{{zwsp}}]) | ]/] (]) | ]/] (])}}
| platform = {{hlist | ] | ] | ] | ] | ] | ] | ] | ] | ] | ] | ] | ] | ] | ] | ] | ]}}
| genre = ]
| license = ]
| language = {{hlist | Russian | English | Portuguese | Ukrainian | German | Czech | French | Chinese | Turkish | Spanish | Arabic | Vietnamese}}
| website = {{URL|icq.com}}
}} }}
'''ICQ''' is an ] ], which was first developed and popularized by the ]i company ], then bought by ], and since April 2010 owned by ] (Russia). The name ''ICQ'' is a ] for the phrase "I seek you". This is an adaptation of the ] callout "]", which means "calling any station".


'''ICQ''' was a cross-platform ] (IM) and ] client founded in June 1996 by Yair Goldfinger, Sefi Vigiser, Amnon Amir, Arik Vardi, and Arik's father, Yossi Vardi. The name ICQ ] the English phrase "I Seek You".<ref name="Time Warner2001" /> Originally developed by the ] company ] in 1996, the client was bought by ] in 1998, and then by ] (now VK) in 2010.<ref>{{Cite press release |url=https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100428005962/en/Digital-Sky-Technologies-Acquire-AOL%E2%80%99s-ICQ-Instant|title=News|website=www.businesswire.com}}</ref>
The first version of the program was released in November 1996 and ICQ became the first ]-wide ] service, later patenting the technology.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/2591723.stm |title=BBC NEWS | Technology | AOL wins instant messaging case |publisher=news.bbc.co.uk |accessdate=2010-03-31 | date=December 19, 2002}}</ref> AOL acquired Mirabilis on June 8, 1998, for US$407 million.


The ICQ client application and service were initially released in November 1996, freely available to download. The business did not have traditional marketing and relied mostly on word-of-mouth advertising instead, with customers telling their friends about it, who then informed their friends, and so on.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-06-19 |title=What Is ICQ? Myths, Scams & More (with pictures) |url=http://www.easytechjunkie.com/what-is-icq.htm |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=Easy Tech Junkie |language=en-US}}</ref> ICQ was among the first stand-alone ] (IM) applications—while real-time chat was not in itself new (] being the most common platform at the time), the concept of a fully centralized service with individual user accounts focused on one-on-one conversations set the blueprint for later instant messaging services like ],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.techspot.com/article/1771-icq/|title=What Ever Happened to ICQ?|website=TechSpot|date=23 February 2022 }}</ref> and its influence is seen in modern social media applications. ICQ became the first widely adopted IM platform.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://medium.com/@Workato/from-aim-to-slack-tracing-the-history-of-chat-apps-b2419c12b9dc|title=From AIM to Slack: Tracing the History of Chat Apps|date=June 9, 2017|website=Medium}}</ref>
In April 2010, AOL sold ICQ to ] for $187.5 million.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2ba3294a-52c1-11df-a192-00144feab49a.html |title=FT.com / Media - AOL sells ICQ to Russian internet company |publisher=www.ft.com |accessdate=2010-04-28 }}</ref> According to Time Warner, ICQ has over 100 million accounts registered.<ref>, Time Warner Press Release - May 09, 2001</ref>

At its peak around 2001, ICQ had more than 100 million accounts registered.<ref name="Time Warner2001"> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190510153236/http://www.timewarner.com/newsroom/press-releases/2001/05/09/icq-celebrates-100-million-registered-users |date=2019-05-10 }}, Time Warner Press Release – May 09, 2001 (accessed 2015-05-12).</ref> At the time of the Mail.Ru acquisition in 2010, there were around 42 million daily users.<ref name="bloomberg2014">{{citation|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-07-29/icq-messenger-is-growing-for-the-first-time-in-years|title=ICQ Messenger Is Growing for the First Time in Years|first=Ilya|last=Khrennikov|date=29 July 2014|work=Bloomberg Business}}</ref> In 2022, ICQ had about 11 million monthly users.<ref>{{cite news |title=What Ever Happened to ICQ? |url=https://www.techspot.com/article/1771-icq/ |work=TechSpot |date=23 February 2022}}</ref>

The service was shut down on June 26, 2024, following an announcement on the website of ICQ in May 2024 that the service would be discontinued.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://uk.pcmag.com/mobile-apps/152479/icq-one-of-the-oldest-instant-messengers-is-shutting-down|title=ICQ, One of the Oldest Instant Messengers, Is Shutting Down|first=Michael|last=Kan|date=May 24, 2024|website=pcmag.com}}</ref>

== Features of ICQ New ==

The last version of the service, launched in 2020 as "ICQ New" featured a number of different messaging functions:

* Private chats: conversations between two users, with history synchronized to the cloud. A user could delete a sent message at any time, and a notification will be shown indicating that the message has been deleted.
* A chat with oneself, which could be used to save messages from group or private chats, or upload media content as a form of ].
* Group chats with up to 25 thousand participants at the same time, which any user could create. Users could hide their phone number from other participants, see which group members have read a message, and switched off notifications for messages from specific group members.
* Audio and video calls with up to five people.
* Sending and receiving of audio messages, with automatic transcription to text.
* Channels, where authors could publish posts as text messages and attach media files, similar to a ]. Once the post was published, subscribers receive a notification as they would from regular and group chats. The channel author could remain anonymous.
* Polls inside group chats.
* An API-bot which could be used by anyone to create a ], to perform specific actions and interact with users.
* "Stickers": small images or photos expressing some form of emotion, could be selected from a provided sticker library or users could upload their own. ] was used to recommend stickers automatically.
* "Masks": images that could be superimposed onto the camera in real-time during video calls, or onto photos to be sent to other users.
* ]s, which users could set to use in place of a phone number for others to search for and contact them.
* "Smart answers": short phrases that appear above the message box which can be used to answer messages. ICQ New analyzed the contents of a conversation and suggests a few pre-set answers.

==UIN==
ICQ users are identified and distinguished from one another by UIN, or User Identification Numbers, distributed in sequential order. The UIN was invented by ], as the user name assigned to each user upon registration. Issued UINs started at '10,000' (5 digits) and every user receives a UIN when first registering with ICQ. As of ICQ6 users are also able to log in using the specific ] address they associated with their UIN during the initial registration process.
Unlike other instant messaging software or ]s, on ICQ the only permanent user info is the UIN, although it is possible to search for other users using their associated e-mail address or any other detail they have made public by updating it in their account's public profile. In addition the user can change all of his or her personal information, including ] and e-mail address, without having to re-register. Since 2000 ICQ and ] users were able to add each other to their contact list without the need for any external clients. (The AIM service has since been discontinued.) As a response to UIN theft or sale of attractive UINs, ICQ started to store email addresses previously associated with a UIN.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.icq.com/register/email_attach.php|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060209025659/http://www.icq.com/register/email_attach.php|url-status=dead|title=icq.com|archivedate=February 9, 2006}}</ref> As such UINs that are stolen can sometimes be reclaimed. This applies only if (since 1999 onwards) a valid primary email address was entered into the user profile.


==History== ==History==
]
] was first established in 1996 by five ]is: Yair Goldfinger, Sefi Vigiser, Amnon Amir, Arik Vardi, and Arik's father ]. They recognized that many people were ] accessing the Internet through a non-] ], and that there was no software that enabled an immediate connection between them.
The founding company of ICQ, Mirabilis, was established in June 1996 by five ] developers: Yair Goldfinger, Sefi Vigiser, Amnon Amir, Arik Vardi, and Arik's father ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.israel21c.org/an-artist-for-the-high-tech-age/|title=An artist for the high-tech age|date=July 6, 2003|website=ISRAEL21c}}</ref> ICQ was one of the first text-based messengers to reach a wide range of users.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Petronzio|first=Matt|title=A Brief History of Instant Messaging|url=https://mashable.com/2012/10/25/instant-messaging-history/|access-date=2020-11-17|website=Mashable|date=25 October 2012 |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210307091743/https://mashable.com/2012/10/25/instant-messaging-history/|archive-date=2021-03-07|url-status=dead}}</ref>


The technology Mirabilis developed for ICQ was distributed free of charge. The technology's success encouraged ] to acquire Mirabilis on June 8, 1998, for $287 million up front and $120 million in additional payments over three years based on performance levels.<ref name="nyt mirabilis">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/06/09/business/america-online-to-buy-internet-chat-service-for-287-million.html |newspaper=] |date=June 9, 1998 |title=America Online to Buy Internet Chat Service for $287 Million }}</ref> In 2002 AOL successfully patented the technology.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/2591723.stm |title=BBC NEWS &#124; Technology &#124; AOL wins instant messaging case |publisher=news.bbc.co.uk |access-date=2010-03-31 | date=December 19, 2002}}</ref><ref>{{cite patent |country=US |number=6449344 |title=Communication system |status=patent |assign1=Aol Acquisition Corporation |invent1=Goldfinger, Yair |invent2=Vigiser, Sefi |invent3=Vardi, Arieh |invent4=Amnon, Amir |pubdate= |gdate=2002-09-10 |fdate=1997-01-27 |pridate=1996-10-06}}</ref>
What was missing was the technology for locating and connecting the users of the ] ].


After the purchase, the product was initially managed by Ariel Yarnitsky and Avi Shechter. ICQ's management changed at the end of 2003. Under the leadership of the new CEO, Orey Gilliam,<ref>{{cite web|last=Haner|first=Lior|title=ICQ, the fashion house Company to enter TV messaging and appliances too|url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/icq-the-fashion-house-1.189682|publisher=Haaretz Daily Newspaper Ltd|access-date=25 April 2014|date=Jun 7, 2006}}</ref> who also assumed the responsibility for all of AOL's messaging business in 2007, ICQ resumed its growth; it was not only a highly profitable company, but one of AOL's most successful businesses. Eliav Moshe replaced Gilliam in 2009 and became ICQ's managing director.<ref>{{cite web|last=Schütz|first=Anja|title=Why ICQ is so successful in Germany|date=March 2010 |url=http://www.silicon.de/41528215/warum-icq-in-deutschland-so-erfolgreich-ist/|publisher=NetMediaEurope Germany|access-date=25 April 2014|language=de}}</ref>
The technology Mirabilis developed for ICQ was distributed free of charge. The technology's success caused ] to acquire Mirabilis on June 8, 1998, for US$407 million. At the time, this was the highest price ever paid to purchase an Israeli technology company.


In April 2010, AOL sold ICQ to Digital Sky Technologies, headed by ], for $187.5 million.<ref name="FT.com mail.ru">{{cite news|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2ba3294a-52c1-11df-a192-00144feab49a.html |newspaper=] |title=AOL sells ICQ to Russian internet company |date=April 28, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100430191635/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2ba3294a-52c1-11df-a192-00144feab49a.html |archive-date=April 30, 2010 }}</ref> While ICQ was displaced by AOL Instant Messenger, Google Talk, and other competitors in the US and many other countries over the 2000s, it remained the most popular instant messaging network in Russian-speaking countries, and an important part of online culture.<ref name="wired2010">{{Cite magazine |last=Kovalev |first=Alexey |author-link=Alexey Kovalev (journalist) |date=2010-05-03 |title=Why ICQ is so important to Russia |language=en |magazine=] |url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/why-icq-is-so-important-to-russia |access-date=2022-04-01 |issn=1357-0978}}</ref> Popular ]s demanded over 11,000₽ in 2010.<ref name="wired2010" />
ICQ's Management changed at the end of 2003. Under the leadership of the new CEO, Orey Gilliam who also assumed the responsibility for all of AOL's Messaging business in 2007, ICQ resumed its growth and turned into a highly profitable company, and one of AOL's most successful businesses.


In September of that year, ] changed its name to Mail.Ru Group. Since the acquisition, Mail.ru has invested in turning ICQ from a desktop client to a mobile messaging system. As of 2013, around half of ICQ's users were using its mobile apps, and in 2014, the number of users began growing for the first time since the purchase.<ref name="bloomberg2014" />
Eliav Moshe replaced Gilliam in 2009 and became ICQ's Managing Director.


In March 2016, the ] of the client was released under the ] on ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://omgdgt.com/2016/03/messeneger-icq-has-opened-the-source-code/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160427112658/http://omgdgt.com/2016/03/messeneger-icq-has-opened-the-source-code/|title=Messeneger ICQ has opened the source code|url-status=usurped|archive-date=April 27, 2016}}</ref><ref> on GitHub</ref>
==Features==
*ICQ features include sending ], ] support, multi-user chats, free daily-limited ] sending, resumable ]s, greeting cards, ]s and a searchable user directory.
*ICQ6 was launched on April 17, 2007, and offered a single communication platform that combines the various user options: ] services, free ] from ICQ to ], voice and ] communication. The software's new sound gallery was orchestrated by the Israeli psychedelic trance duo ]. Among the new additional features in ICQ6 are Quick IM, which allows users to send a short message without opening a conversation window, a "follow me" service directly to the user’s mobile, a multi-chat service and ] support, the ] ] language.


In 2020, Mail.Ru Group decided to launch a new version, "ICQ New", based on the original ICQ. The updated software was presented to the general public on April 6, 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Novinar |first=Novinar |date=April 7, 2020 |title=Mail.Ru Group Brings Back ICQ Messenger With Focus on Group Talks |url=https://russiabusinesstoday.com/technology/mail-ru-group-brings-back-icq-messenger-with-focus-on-group-talks/ |website=Russia Business Today}}</ref>
==Additional products==
ICQ provides all users additional services and content products:
#ICQ TV—An online video magazine. The magazine broadcasts content for teens 24/7.
#ICQ ] Card (together with ])—A SIM card that enables users traveling across Europe to use their ] while paying a discount price.
#ICQ Game Center—A games platform that enables the user to play with and /or against other users.
#ICQ2Go—A web ] option for users who cannot download the program onto their computer (for various reasons, like ] for instance). ICQ2Go uses a ‘port-80’ browser for this type of communication feature.


During the second week of January 2021, ICQ saw a renewed increase in popularity in ], spurred on by the controversy over ] privacy policy update. The number of downloads for the application increased 35-fold in the region.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Purnell |first1=Newley |last2=Wang |first2=Joyu |date=24 January 2021 |title=Dropping WhatsApp? Nostalgia Drives Users to ICQ |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/dropping-whatsapp-nostalgia-drives-users-to-icq-11611502516 |access-date=25 January 2021 |work=]}}</ref>
==UIN==
ICQ users are identified by numbers called ''UIN'', distributed in sequential order. The UIN was first invented by ], as the user name assigned to each user upon registration. The meaning is either ''Universal Internet Number'' or ''Unified Identification Number''. Issued UINs started at number 10000 (5 digits) and every user receives a UIN when first registering to ICQ. As of ICQ6, users are also able to log in using the specific ] address they associated with their UIN during the registration process.
Unlike other instant messaging software or ], on ICQ the only permanent user info is the UIN, although it is possible to search for other users using their associated e-mail address or any other detail they have made public (by updating it in the public profile). In addition, the user can change all of his or her personal information, including ] and e-mail address, without having to re-register. Since 2000, ICQ and ] users are able to add each other to their contact list without the need for any external clients. As a response to UIN theft or sale of attractive UINs, ICQ started to store email addresses previously associated to a UIN.<ref>http://www.icq.com/register/email_attach.php</ref> As such, UINs that are stolen can sometimes be reclaimed. This applies only if (since 1999 and onwards) a valid primary email address was entered into the user profile.

==Development history==
===First versions===
ICQ was developed in 1996 by ]. The company was founded by four young Israelis: ], ], ] and ]. After AOL bought it, it was managed by Ariel Yarnitsky and Avi Shechter.


===Shutdown===
] acquired Mirabilis on June 8, 1998 for $407 million, ($287 million in cash and $120 million over a three-year period based on growth performance levels).
On May 24, 2024, the main page of ICQ's website announced that the service would be shutting down on June 26, 2024.<ref name="auto"/> ICQ recommended that users migrate to ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.pcgamer.com/software/well-miss-you-pioneering-instant-messaging-program-icq-is-finally-shutting-down-after-nearly-30-years/|title=We'll Miss You: Pioneering instant messaging program ICQ is finally shutting down after nearly 30 years|author1=Andy Chalk|website=PC Gamer |date=May 24, 2024|via=www.pcgamer.com}}</ref>


===Later versions=== ===Development history===
*'''ICQ 99a/b''' the first releases that were widely available.
*'''ICQ 2000''' incorporated into ''Notes'' and ''Reminder'' features. *'''ICQ 2000''' incorporated into ''Notes'' and ''Reminder'' features.
*'''ICQ 2001''' included server-side storage of the contact list, allowing for its synchronization on multiple computers. *'''ICQ 2001''' included server-side storage of the contact list. This provided synchronization between multiple computers and enforced obtaining consent before adding UINs to the contact list by preventing clients from modifying the local contact list directly.
*On December 19, 2002, ] announced that ICQ had been issued a United States ] for instant messaging. *In 2002, ] announced that ICQ had been issued a United States ] for instant messaging.
*'''ICQ 2002''' was the last completely advertising-free ICQ version. *'''ICQ 2002''' was the last completely advertising-free ICQ version.
*'''ICQ Pro 2003b''' was the first ICQ version to use the ICQ protocol version 10. However, ''ICQ 5'' and 5.1 use version 9 of the protocol. ''ICQ 2002'' and ''2003a'' used version 8 of the ICQ protocol. Earlier versions (''ICQ 2001b'' and all ICQ clients before it) used ICQ protocol version 7. *'''ICQ Pro 2003b''' was the first ICQ version to use the ICQ protocol version 10. However, ''ICQ 5'' and 5.1 use version 9 of the protocol. ''ICQ 2002'' and ''2003a'' used version 8 of the ICQ protocol. Earlier versions (''ICQ 2001b'' and all ICQ clients before it) used ICQ protocol version 7.
*'''ICQ 4''' and later '''ICQ 5''' (released on Monday, February 7, 2005), were upgrades on ICQ Lite. One addition was Xtraz, which offers games and features intended to appeal to younger users of the Internet. ICQ Lite was originally an idea to offer the lighter users of instant messaging an alternative client which was a smaller download and less resource-hungry for relatively slow computers. *'''ICQ 4''' and later '''ICQ 5''' (released on Monday, February 7, 2005), were upgrades on ICQ Lite. One addition was Xtraz, which offers games and features intended to appeal to younger users of the Internet. ICQ Lite was originally an idea to offer the lighter users of instant messaging an alternative client which was a smaller download and less resource-hungry for relatively slow computers.
*'''ICQ 5''' introduced ] support. There are few official ] available for the current ICQ 5.1 at the official website; however, a number of user-generator skins have been made available for download. *'''ICQ 5''' introduced ] support. There are few official ] available for the current ICQ 5.1 at the official website; however, a number of user-generated skins have been made available for download.
*'''ICQ 6''', released on April 17, 2007, was the first major update since ICQ 4. The ] has been redesigned using ], the same rendering engine used in ]. This change adds new features such as the ability to send IMs directly from the client's contact list. ICQ has recently started forcing users of v5.1 to upgrade to version 6. Those who do not upgrade will find their older version of ICQ does not start up. Although the upgrade to version 6 should be seen as a positive thing, some users may find that useful features such as sending multiple files at one time is no longer supported in the new version. At the beginning of July 2008, a network upgrade forced users to stop using ICQ 5.1 - applications that identified themselves as ICQ 5, such as ], were forced to identify themselves as ICQ 6. There seems to be no alternative for users other than using a different IM program or patching ICQ 5.1 with a special application. *'''ICQ 6''', released on April 17, 2007, was the first major update since ICQ 4. The ] has been redesigned using ], the same rendering engine used in ]. This change adds new features such as the ability to send IMs directly from the client's contact list. ICQ has recently started forcing users of v5.1 to upgrade to version 6 (and XP). Those who do not upgrade will find their older version of ICQ does not start up. Although the upgrade to version 6 should be seen as a positive thing, some users may find that useful features such as sending multiple files at one time is no longer supported in the new version. At the beginning of July 2008, a network upgrade forced users to stop using ICQ 5.1 – applications that identified themselves as ICQ 5, such as ], were forced to identify themselves as ICQ 6. There seems to be no alternative for users other than using a different IM program or patching ICQ 5.1 with a special application.
*'''ICQ 7.0''', released on January 18, 2010. This update includes integration with ] and other websites. It also allows custom personal status similar to ] (]). ICQ 7.0 does not support ] on standard installation or with the addition of an official language pack. This has made its adoption difficult with the established user base from Hong Kong and Taiwan where traditional Chinese is the official language. *'''ICQ 7.0''', released on January 18, 2010. This update includes integration with ] and other websites. It also allows custom personal status similar to ] (]). ICQ 7.0 does not support ] on standard installation or with the addition of an official language pack. This has made its adoption difficult with the established user base from Hong Kong and Taiwan where traditional Chinese is the official language.
*'''ICQ 8''', released on February 5, 2012 – "Meet the new generation of ICQ, Enjoy free video calls, messages and SMS, social networks support and more."

*'''ICQ 10.0''', released January 18, 2016. Newest update is 10.0 Build 46867, released on May 27, 2022.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.filehorse.com/download-icq/old-versions/|access-date=June 30, 2022|work=File Horse|title=ICQ}}</ref>
==In popular culture==
ICQ also plays an important role in a Polish popular novel ''Samotność w sieci'' (Loneliness in the Net) as its main protagonists accidentally find each other in the Internet and, via ICQ, they develop passionate feelings.

The famous high-pitch "Uh-oh!" was featured in the chorus of ]'s song, "www.nevergetoveryou."

], a central character in the '']'' by ] uses ICQ as a means of communicating with associates in Hacker Republic and other people.


==Criticism== ==Criticism==
===Policy against unofficial clients===

] (and later Mail.ru) pursued an aggressive policy regarding alternative ("unauthorized") ICQ clients.
According to security analyst Jeffrey Carr, use of ICQ may cause security problems because it was purchased by Russian investment company Digital Sky Technologies. ICQ has fallen out of fashion in US and Britain, but it remains popular in eastern Europe and Russia. Carr says the new ownership may be used by Russia's powerful secret service, the FSB (formerly the KGB) since Russian law requires ICQ to open its logs "whenever the spooks want".<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/shortsharpscience/2010/07/russian-spooks-could-claim-web.html |title=Russian spooks could claim web chat for themselves |accessdate=2010-07-15}}</ref>
*In July 2008, changes were implemented on ICQ servers causing many unofficial clients to stop working. These users received an official notification from "ICQ System".

*On December 9, 2008, another change to the ICQ servers occurred: clients sending Client IDs not matching ICQ 5.1 or higher stopped working.
===Spam===
*On December 29, 2008, the ICQ press service distributed a statement characterizing alternative clients as dangerous.<ref>{{Cite web|url= http://www.cyberstyle.ru/newsline/4538-icq-qip-infium-jabber-miranda-mail.ru-agent-jimm-messenger-im-instant-messaging-aska-mgnovennye-soobseniy-klient.html|title= Официальное заявление ICQ: использовать QIP — опасно &#124; CyberStyle.ru|website= www.cyberstyle.ru}}</ref>
ICQ is often used for distribution of unwanted advertisement and ].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pcworld.com/article/12571/end_icq_spam.html |title=End ICQ Spam |accessdate=2010-03-09}}</ref> This is facilitated by ICQ's use of usernames consisting of multiple-digit numbers.
*On January 21, 2009, ICQ servers started blocking all unofficial clients in Russia and ] countries.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://profy.com/2009/01/21/aol-engaged-in-dubious-competition-practices-for-icq-in-russia/ |title=AOL Engaged in Dubious Competition Practices for ICQ in Russia |access-date=2009-02-04 |archive-date=2009-01-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090124231815/http://profy.com/2009/01/21/aol-engaged-in-dubious-competition-practices-for-icq-in-russia/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Users in Russia and Ukraine received a message from UIN 1:

===Privacy and copyright===
When accepting "ICQ Terms Of Service — Acceptable Use Policy" (2000), a user gives all the ] in the posted information to ICQ Inc.<ref name="icq_terms_of_service"></ref> This implies that ICQ Inc. may publish, distribute etc. any messages sent through the system that could be meant to be private:
<blockquote>"You agree that by posting any material or information anywhere on the ICQ Services and Information you surrender your copyright and any other proprietary right in the posted material or information. You further agree that ICQ Inc. is entitled to use at its own discretion any of the posted material or information in any manner it deems fit, including, but not limited to, publishing the material or distributing it."</blockquote>

It is not possible to cancel or delete an ICQ account.

===Pressure on alternative clients===
] pursued an aggressive policy regarding alternative ("unauthorized") ICQ clients.
*In July 2008 changes were implemented on ICQ servers causing many unofficial clients to stop working. These users received an official notification from "ICQ System".
*On December 9, 2008, another change to the ICQ servers was made. The clients that were sending Client IDs not matching ICQ 5.1 or higher stopped working.
*On December 29, 2008, ICQ press service distributed a statement characterizing alternative clients as dangerous.<ref></ref>
*On January 21, 2009, ICQ servers started blocking all unofficial clients in Russia and ] countries.<ref></ref> Users in Russia and Ukraine received a message from UIN 1:
<blockquote> <blockquote>
"Системное сообщение<br/> "Системное сообщение<br/>
:ICQ не поддерживает используемую вами версию. Скачайте бесплатную авторизованную версию ICQ с официального web-сайта ICQ. :ICQ не поддерживает используемую вами версию. Скачайте бесплатную авторизованную версию ICQ с официального web-сайта ICQ.
System Message<br/> System Message
:The version you are using is not supported by ICQ. Download a free authorized ICQ version from ICQ’s official website." :The version you are using is not supported by ICQ. Download a free authorized ICQ version from ICQ's official website."
</blockquote> </blockquote>
On there is an "important message" for Russian-speaking ICQ users: "ICQ осуществляет поддержку только авторизированных версий программ: ICQ Lite и ICQ 6.5." ("ICQ supports only authorized versions of programs: ICQ Lite and ICQ 6.5.") On icq.com there was an "important message" for Russian-speaking ICQ users: "ICQ осуществляет поддержку только авторизированных версий программ: ICQ Lite и ICQ 6.5." ("ICQ supports only authorized versions of programs: ICQ Lite and ICQ 6.5.")
*On February 3, 2009, the events of January 21 were repeated. *On February 3, 2009, the events of January 21 were repeated.
*On December 27, 2018, ICQ announced it was to stop supporting unofficial clients, affecting many users who prefer a compact size using ] and other clients.
*There also were problems with other alternative clients, even for Mac OS and Linux, even though the Mac client is no longer available, and there have never been any official clients for Linux at all.
*On December 28, 2018, ICQ stopped working on some unofficial clients.
*In late March, 2019, ICQ stopped working on the ] client, as initiated in December 2018.

===Cooperation with Russian intelligence services===
According to a '']'' article published in May 2018, Russian intelligence agencies had access to online reading of ICQ users' correspondence during crime investigations. The article examined 34 sentences of Russian courts, during the investigation of which the evidence of the defendants' guilt was obtained by reading correspondence on a PC or mobile devices. In six of the fourteen cases in which ICQ was involved, the capturing of information occurred before the seizure of the device. Because the rival service ] blocks all access for the agencies, the Advisor of the Russian President, Herman Klimenko, recommended to use ICQ instead.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://novayagazeta.ru/articles/2018/05/17/76500-aska-i-tovarisch-mayor|title="Аська" и товарищ майор|website=Новая газета}}</ref>

=== Child pornography ===
In 2023, an investigation by Brazilian news outlet ''Núcleo Jornalismo'' found that ICQ was used to freely share ] due to lax moderation policies.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-06-22 |title=No Facebook, links com pornografia infantil circulam livremente |trans-title=On Facebook, links containing child pornography are shared freely |url=https://nucleo.jor.br/especiais/2023-06-22-grupos-publicos-de-pornografia-infantil-sao-compartilhados-no-facebook/ |access-date=2023-06-23 |website=Núcleo Jornalismo |language=pt-br}}</ref>


==Clients== ==Clients==
]'s ] ] used by ICQ is ] and using a third party client is a violation of , nevertheless a number of people have created more or less compatible, third-party clients, by using reverse engineering and protocol descriptions available on the net. These clients include: ]'s ] ] used by ICQ is ] and using a third party client is a violation of ICQ Terms of Service. Nevertheless, a number of third-party clients have been created by using reverse-engineering and protocol descriptions. These clients include:
*]: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, Google Talk, ], and others, for ];
*]: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC, and XMPP;
*]: IRC gateway, supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, Google Talk, and XMPP;
*]: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC and XMPP, text-based;
*] (formerly mICQ): text-based;
*]: supports ICQ, AIM, MSN, Yahoo!, Google Talk, XMPP, and social networking updated for ];
*]: supports MSN, AIM, ICQ, and Yahoo!;
*]: web-based, supports MSN, AIM, Yahoo!, ICQ, Google Talk and MySpace Chat;
*]: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC, and XMPP, for ];
*]: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, Skype, Twitter, and others ];
*]: uses ICQ's UIN as an AIM screenname, for ];
*]: supports ICQ, for ] ]
*]: supports AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo, XMPP, Google Talk, IRC, Gadu-Gadu, Novell GroupWise Messenger and others, for Unix-like;
*]: ]-based, supports ICQ, AIM, Yahoo!, MSN, Google Talk and XMPP;
*]: IM and social networking combined with location; supports AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo!;
*]: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC, Google Talk, XMPP, Gadu-Gadu, BNet and others, for ];
*]: ]-based;
*]: Supports various protocols such as AIM, Yahoo!, MSN, XMPP, Google Talk, Gadu-Gadu, ICQ, Facebook IM, as well as its own proprietary IM protocol under the same name;
*] (formerly Gaim): supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, Gtalk, MSN, IRC, XMPP, Gadu-Gadu, SILC, Meanwhile (]) and others;
*]: supports ICQ, AOL Instant Messenger, Google Talk, Sony Station Friends, MSN, Yahoo! Messenger, and Xfire;
*]: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, Yahoo! Japan, AIM, MSN, XMPP and iChat Rendezvous, for ];
*]: supports ICQ, AIM, and partially XMPP and XIMSS;
*]: works on MS Windows, GNU/Linux, FreeBSD; supports Jabber/XMPP, Google Talk, ICQ and AIM (Oscar), Yahoo! Messenger and Microsoft Messenger (MSN);
*]: supports ICQ, for ];
*]: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC, Google Talk, XMPP and others;


* ]: supports ICQ, ], ], ], ], ], and others, for ]
AOL has recently begun making its ICQ software more ]-like by adding ] ], as well as introducing cross AIM–ICQ communication. Such capability made it to ] stages, but AOL announced discontinuation of cross AIM-ICQ communication on November 5, 2010.{{Citation needed|date=November 2010}}
* ]: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, ], and XMPP
* ]: IRC gateway, supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, Google Talk, and XMPP
* ]: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC and XMPP, text-based
* ] (formerly mICQ): text-based
* Fire: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC, and XMPP, for ]
* ]: supports ICQ, for ] ]
* ]: supports AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo, XMPP, Google Talk, IRC, Gadu-Gadu, Novell GroupWise Messenger and others, for Unix-like
* ]: IM and social networking combined with location; supports AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo!
* ]: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC, Google Talk, XMPP, Gadu-Gadu, BNet and others, for ]
* ]: ]-based
* ] (formerly Gaim): supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, Gtalk, MSN, IRC, XMPP, Gadu-Gadu, SILC, Meanwhile, (]) and others
* ]: supports ICQ, AIM, XMPP and XIMSS
* ]: supports ICQ, for ]
* ]: supports ICQ, IRC, Google Talk, XMPP and others

AOL supported clients include:
* ] (discontinued in 2017)
* ]/]: uses ICQ's UIN as an AIM screenname, for ]


==See also== ==See also==
*] *]
*] *]
*] *]
*] *]
*] *]
*]


==References== ==References==
{{Reflist}} {{Reflist|30em}}


==External links== ==External links==
{{Commons category|ICQ}}
*
* *


{{IM clients}} {{Instant messaging}}
{{Authority control}}


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Latest revision as of 01:38, 21 December 2024

Cross-platform instant messaging system and VoIP client For other uses, see ICQ (disambiguation).
ICQ
Original author(s)Mirabilis
Developer(s)
Initial releaseNovember 15, 1996; 28 years ago (1996-11-15)
Final release10.0.46867 (May 27, 2022)
Repository
Written in
Platform
Available in
  • Russian
  • English
  • Portuguese
  • Ukrainian
  • German
  • Czech
  • French
  • Chinese
  • Turkish
  • Spanish
  • Arabic
  • Vietnamese
TypeInstant messaging
LicenseProprietary
Websiteicq.com

ICQ was a cross-platform instant messaging (IM) and VoIP client founded in June 1996 by Yair Goldfinger, Sefi Vigiser, Amnon Amir, Arik Vardi, and Arik's father, Yossi Vardi. The name ICQ derives from the English phrase "I Seek You". Originally developed by the Israeli company Mirabilis in 1996, the client was bought by AOL in 1998, and then by Mail.Ru Group (now VK) in 2010.

The ICQ client application and service were initially released in November 1996, freely available to download. The business did not have traditional marketing and relied mostly on word-of-mouth advertising instead, with customers telling their friends about it, who then informed their friends, and so on. ICQ was among the first stand-alone instant messenger (IM) applications—while real-time chat was not in itself new (Internet Relay Chat being the most common platform at the time), the concept of a fully centralized service with individual user accounts focused on one-on-one conversations set the blueprint for later instant messaging services like AIM, and its influence is seen in modern social media applications. ICQ became the first widely adopted IM platform.

At its peak around 2001, ICQ had more than 100 million accounts registered. At the time of the Mail.Ru acquisition in 2010, there were around 42 million daily users. In 2022, ICQ had about 11 million monthly users.

The service was shut down on June 26, 2024, following an announcement on the website of ICQ in May 2024 that the service would be discontinued.

Features of ICQ New

The last version of the service, launched in 2020 as "ICQ New" featured a number of different messaging functions:

  • Private chats: conversations between two users, with history synchronized to the cloud. A user could delete a sent message at any time, and a notification will be shown indicating that the message has been deleted.
  • A chat with oneself, which could be used to save messages from group or private chats, or upload media content as a form of cloud storage.
  • Group chats with up to 25 thousand participants at the same time, which any user could create. Users could hide their phone number from other participants, see which group members have read a message, and switched off notifications for messages from specific group members.
  • Audio and video calls with up to five people.
  • Sending and receiving of audio messages, with automatic transcription to text.
  • Channels, where authors could publish posts as text messages and attach media files, similar to a blog. Once the post was published, subscribers receive a notification as they would from regular and group chats. The channel author could remain anonymous.
  • Polls inside group chats.
  • An API-bot which could be used by anyone to create a bot, to perform specific actions and interact with users.
  • "Stickers": small images or photos expressing some form of emotion, could be selected from a provided sticker library or users could upload their own. Machine learning was used to recommend stickers automatically.
  • "Masks": images that could be superimposed onto the camera in real-time during video calls, or onto photos to be sent to other users.
  • Nicknames, which users could set to use in place of a phone number for others to search for and contact them.
  • "Smart answers": short phrases that appear above the message box which can be used to answer messages. ICQ New analyzed the contents of a conversation and suggests a few pre-set answers.

UIN

ICQ users are identified and distinguished from one another by UIN, or User Identification Numbers, distributed in sequential order. The UIN was invented by Mirabilis, as the user name assigned to each user upon registration. Issued UINs started at '10,000' (5 digits) and every user receives a UIN when first registering with ICQ. As of ICQ6 users are also able to log in using the specific e-mail address they associated with their UIN during the initial registration process. Unlike other instant messaging software or web applications, on ICQ the only permanent user info is the UIN, although it is possible to search for other users using their associated e-mail address or any other detail they have made public by updating it in their account's public profile. In addition the user can change all of his or her personal information, including screen name and e-mail address, without having to re-register. Since 2000 ICQ and AIM users were able to add each other to their contact list without the need for any external clients. (The AIM service has since been discontinued.) As a response to UIN theft or sale of attractive UINs, ICQ started to store email addresses previously associated with a UIN. As such UINs that are stolen can sometimes be reclaimed. This applies only if (since 1999 onwards) a valid primary email address was entered into the user profile.

History

Older version of the ICQ logo, used until April 2020

The founding company of ICQ, Mirabilis, was established in June 1996 by five Israeli developers: Yair Goldfinger, Sefi Vigiser, Amnon Amir, Arik Vardi, and Arik's father Yossi Vardi. ICQ was one of the first text-based messengers to reach a wide range of users.

The technology Mirabilis developed for ICQ was distributed free of charge. The technology's success encouraged AOL to acquire Mirabilis on June 8, 1998, for $287 million up front and $120 million in additional payments over three years based on performance levels. In 2002 AOL successfully patented the technology.

After the purchase, the product was initially managed by Ariel Yarnitsky and Avi Shechter. ICQ's management changed at the end of 2003. Under the leadership of the new CEO, Orey Gilliam, who also assumed the responsibility for all of AOL's messaging business in 2007, ICQ resumed its growth; it was not only a highly profitable company, but one of AOL's most successful businesses. Eliav Moshe replaced Gilliam in 2009 and became ICQ's managing director.

In April 2010, AOL sold ICQ to Digital Sky Technologies, headed by Alisher Usmanov, for $187.5 million. While ICQ was displaced by AOL Instant Messenger, Google Talk, and other competitors in the US and many other countries over the 2000s, it remained the most popular instant messaging network in Russian-speaking countries, and an important part of online culture. Popular UINs demanded over 11,000₽ in 2010.

In September of that year, Digital Sky Technologies changed its name to Mail.Ru Group. Since the acquisition, Mail.ru has invested in turning ICQ from a desktop client to a mobile messaging system. As of 2013, around half of ICQ's users were using its mobile apps, and in 2014, the number of users began growing for the first time since the purchase.

In March 2016, the source code of the client was released under the Apache license on GitHub.

In 2020, Mail.Ru Group decided to launch a new version, "ICQ New", based on the original ICQ. The updated software was presented to the general public on April 6, 2020.

During the second week of January 2021, ICQ saw a renewed increase in popularity in Hong Kong, spurred on by the controversy over WhatsApp's privacy policy update. The number of downloads for the application increased 35-fold in the region.

Shutdown

On May 24, 2024, the main page of ICQ's website announced that the service would be shutting down on June 26, 2024. ICQ recommended that users migrate to VK Messenger and VK WorkSpace.

Development history

  • ICQ 99a/b the first releases that were widely available.
  • ICQ 2000 incorporated into Notes and Reminder features.
  • ICQ 2001 included server-side storage of the contact list. This provided synchronization between multiple computers and enforced obtaining consent before adding UINs to the contact list by preventing clients from modifying the local contact list directly.
  • In 2002, AOL Time Warner announced that ICQ had been issued a United States patent for instant messaging.
  • ICQ 2002 was the last completely advertising-free ICQ version.
  • ICQ Pro 2003b was the first ICQ version to use the ICQ protocol version 10. However, ICQ 5 and 5.1 use version 9 of the protocol. ICQ 2002 and 2003a used version 8 of the ICQ protocol. Earlier versions (ICQ 2001b and all ICQ clients before it) used ICQ protocol version 7.
  • ICQ 4 and later ICQ 5 (released on Monday, February 7, 2005), were upgrades on ICQ Lite. One addition was Xtraz, which offers games and features intended to appeal to younger users of the Internet. ICQ Lite was originally an idea to offer the lighter users of instant messaging an alternative client which was a smaller download and less resource-hungry for relatively slow computers.
  • ICQ 5 introduced skins support. There are few official skins available for the current ICQ 5.1 at the official website; however, a number of user-generated skins have been made available for download.
  • ICQ 6, released on April 17, 2007, was the first major update since ICQ 4. The user interface has been redesigned using Boxely, the same rendering engine used in AIM Triton. This change adds new features such as the ability to send IMs directly from the client's contact list. ICQ has recently started forcing users of v5.1 to upgrade to version 6 (and XP). Those who do not upgrade will find their older version of ICQ does not start up. Although the upgrade to version 6 should be seen as a positive thing, some users may find that useful features such as sending multiple files at one time is no longer supported in the new version. At the beginning of July 2008, a network upgrade forced users to stop using ICQ 5.1 – applications that identified themselves as ICQ 5, such as Pidgin, were forced to identify themselves as ICQ 6. There seems to be no alternative for users other than using a different IM program or patching ICQ 5.1 with a special application.
  • ICQ 7.0, released on January 18, 2010. This update includes integration with Facebook and other websites. It also allows custom personal status similar to Windows Live Messenger (MSN Messenger). ICQ 7.0 does not support traditional Chinese on standard installation or with the addition of an official language pack. This has made its adoption difficult with the established user base from Hong Kong and Taiwan where traditional Chinese is the official language.
  • ICQ 8, released on February 5, 2012 – "Meet the new generation of ICQ, Enjoy free video calls, messages and SMS, social networks support and more."
  • ICQ 10.0, released January 18, 2016. Newest update is 10.0 Build 46867, released on May 27, 2022.

Criticism

Policy against unofficial clients

AOL (and later Mail.ru) pursued an aggressive policy regarding alternative ("unauthorized") ICQ clients.

  • In July 2008, changes were implemented on ICQ servers causing many unofficial clients to stop working. These users received an official notification from "ICQ System".
  • On December 9, 2008, another change to the ICQ servers occurred: clients sending Client IDs not matching ICQ 5.1 or higher stopped working.
  • On December 29, 2008, the ICQ press service distributed a statement characterizing alternative clients as dangerous.
  • On January 21, 2009, ICQ servers started blocking all unofficial clients in Russia and Commonwealth of Independent States countries. Users in Russia and Ukraine received a message from UIN 1:

"Системное сообщение

ICQ не поддерживает используемую вами версию. Скачайте бесплатную авторизованную версию ICQ с официального web-сайта ICQ.

System Message

The version you are using is not supported by ICQ. Download a free authorized ICQ version from ICQ's official website."

On icq.com there was an "important message" for Russian-speaking ICQ users: "ICQ осуществляет поддержку только авторизированных версий программ: ICQ Lite и ICQ 6.5." ("ICQ supports only authorized versions of programs: ICQ Lite and ICQ 6.5.")

  • On February 3, 2009, the events of January 21 were repeated.
  • On December 27, 2018, ICQ announced it was to stop supporting unofficial clients, affecting many users who prefer a compact size using Miranda NG and other clients.
  • On December 28, 2018, ICQ stopped working on some unofficial clients.
  • In late March, 2019, ICQ stopped working on the Pidgin client, as initiated in December 2018.

Cooperation with Russian intelligence services

According to a Novaya Gazeta article published in May 2018, Russian intelligence agencies had access to online reading of ICQ users' correspondence during crime investigations. The article examined 34 sentences of Russian courts, during the investigation of which the evidence of the defendants' guilt was obtained by reading correspondence on a PC or mobile devices. In six of the fourteen cases in which ICQ was involved, the capturing of information occurred before the seizure of the device. Because the rival service Telegram blocks all access for the agencies, the Advisor of the Russian President, Herman Klimenko, recommended to use ICQ instead.

Child pornography

In 2023, an investigation by Brazilian news outlet Núcleo Jornalismo found that ICQ was used to freely share child pornography due to lax moderation policies.

Clients

AOL's OSCAR network protocol used by ICQ is proprietary and using a third party client is a violation of ICQ Terms of Service. Nevertheless, a number of third-party clients have been created by using reverse-engineering and protocol descriptions. These clients include:

  • Adium: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, Google Talk, XMPP, and others, for macOS
  • Ayttm: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC, and XMPP
  • BitlBee: IRC gateway, supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, Google Talk, and XMPP
  • Centericq: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC and XMPP, text-based
  • climm (formerly mICQ): text-based
  • Fire: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC, and XMPP, for macOS
  • Jimm: supports ICQ, for Java ME mobile devices
  • Kopete: supports AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo, XMPP, Google Talk, IRC, Gadu-Gadu, Novell GroupWise Messenger and others, for Unix-like
  • Meetro: IM and social networking combined with location; supports AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo!
  • Miranda NG: supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, MSN, IRC, Google Talk, XMPP, Gadu-Gadu, BNet and others, for Windows
  • Naim: ncurses-based
  • Pidgin (formerly Gaim): supports ICQ, Yahoo!, AIM, Gtalk, MSN, IRC, XMPP, Gadu-Gadu, SILC, Meanwhile, (IBM Lotus Sametime) and others
  • QIP: supports ICQ, AIM, XMPP and XIMSS
  • stICQ: supports ICQ, for Symbian OS
  • Trillian: supports ICQ, IRC, Google Talk, XMPP and others

AOL supported clients include:

See also

References

  1. ^ ICQ Surpasses 100 Million Registered Users Archived 2019-05-10 at the Wayback Machine, Time Warner Press Release – May 09, 2001 (accessed 2015-05-12).
  2. "News". www.businesswire.com (Press release).
  3. "What Is ICQ? Myths, Scams & More (with pictures)". Easy Tech Junkie. 2023-06-19. Retrieved 2023-07-24.
  4. "What Ever Happened to ICQ?". TechSpot. 23 February 2022.
  5. "From AIM to Slack: Tracing the History of Chat Apps". Medium. June 9, 2017.
  6. ^ Khrennikov, Ilya (29 July 2014), "ICQ Messenger Is Growing for the First Time in Years", Bloomberg Business
  7. "What Ever Happened to ICQ?". TechSpot. 23 February 2022.
  8. ^ Kan, Michael (May 24, 2024). "ICQ, One of the Oldest Instant Messengers, Is Shutting Down". pcmag.com.
  9. "icq.com". Archived from the original on February 9, 2006.
  10. "An artist for the high-tech age". ISRAEL21c. July 6, 2003.
  11. Petronzio, Matt (25 October 2012). "A Brief History of Instant Messaging". Mashable. Archived from the original on 2021-03-07. Retrieved 2020-11-17.
  12. "America Online to Buy Internet Chat Service for $287 Million". The New York Times. June 9, 1998.
  13. "BBC NEWS | Technology | AOL wins instant messaging case". news.bbc.co.uk. December 19, 2002. Retrieved 2010-03-31.
  14. US patent 6449344, Goldfinger, Yair; Vigiser, Sefi & Vardi, Arieh et al., "Communication system", issued 2002-09-10, assigned to Aol Acquisition Corporation 
  15. Haner, Lior (Jun 7, 2006). "ICQ, the fashion house Company to enter TV messaging and appliances too". Haaretz Daily Newspaper Ltd. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  16. Schütz, Anja (March 2010). "Why ICQ is so successful in Germany" (in German). NetMediaEurope Germany. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  17. "AOL sells ICQ to Russian internet company". Financial Times. April 28, 2010. Archived from the original on April 30, 2010.
  18. ^ Kovalev, Alexey (2010-05-03). "Why ICQ is so important to Russia". Wired. ISSN 1357-0978. Retrieved 2022-04-01.
  19. "Messeneger ICQ has opened the source code". Archived from the original on April 27, 2016.
  20. icqdesktop on GitHub
  21. Novinar, Novinar (April 7, 2020). "Mail.Ru Group Brings Back ICQ Messenger With Focus on Group Talks". Russia Business Today.
  22. Purnell, Newley; Wang, Joyu (24 January 2021). "Dropping WhatsApp? Nostalgia Drives Users to ICQ". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  23. Andy Chalk (May 24, 2024). "We'll Miss You: Pioneering instant messaging program ICQ is finally shutting down after nearly 30 years". PC Gamer – via www.pcgamer.com.
  24. "ICQ". File Horse. Retrieved June 30, 2022.
  25. "Официальное заявление ICQ: использовать QIP — опасно | CyberStyle.ru". www.cyberstyle.ru.
  26. "AOL Engaged in Dubious Competition Practices for ICQ in Russia". Archived from the original on 2009-01-24. Retrieved 2009-02-04.
  27. ""Аська" и товарищ майор". Новая газета.
  28. "No Facebook, links com pornografia infantil circulam livremente" [On Facebook, links containing child pornography are shared freely]. Núcleo Jornalismo (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2023-06-22. Retrieved 2023-06-23.

External links

Instant messaging
Protocols
(comparison)
Open
Closed
Services
Clients
(comparison)
Single protocol
Multi-protocol
XMPP (Jabber)
MSNP
Defunct
Related
Categories: