AOL Instant Messenger Shutting Down

Signing off for the last time.

By Brian Barnett

AOL Instant Messenger will be discontinued on December 15.

Michael Albers, vice president of communications product at Oath, made the announcement about the messaging platform on Tumblr. He cited changes in "the way in which we communicate with each other" as the reason for shutting down AIM, which has been around since the 1990s.

He also thanked AIM users, saying they "likely remember the CD, your first screenname, your carefully curated away messages, and how you organized your buddy lists."

The door will close for the final time on AIM on December 15. (Courtesy of Oath)

Originally a part of the AOL Desktop internet suite, it became much more popular once it was split off into a separate download. At the time it was in competition with Microsoft's MSN Instant Messenger service, Yahoo! Messenger, and ICQ.

AOL Instant Messenger is such a point of nostalgia for some that using the messaging service is the premise of indie game Emily Is Away.

Brian Barnett is an IGN Freelancer. He remembers many late-night chats with friends on AIM and MSN Messenger. Now pretty much all he uses is Twitter. You can follow him @Ribnax.

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