AOL owns IM
Poster: Aron Schatz
Posted on December 18, 2002 at 2:56:34 AM
Validated by the US gov at least. Issued recently, this gives AOL a huge ego now. And it could spell trouble for MSN and others.
Quote
The patent (6449344), originally filed in 1997, and granted in September this year, gives AOL instant messaging subsidiary ICQ rights as the inventor of the popular IM Internet application. The patent covers anything resembling a network that lets multiple IM users see when other people are present and then communicate with them.