In the era of social media and video conferencing, it is easy to forget about the classic online instant messaging services that have been around for decades. These services allowed people to chat with friends in real-time, no matter where they were in the world. Today, we will take a trip down memory lane and discuss some of the classic online instant messaging services that we used to love.

1. AOL Instant Messenger (AIM)

AIM was launched in 1997 and quickly became one of the most popular instant messaging services. It was easy to use and allowed users to chat with friends in real-time. AIM also had a feature that allowed users to set an away message, which was a popular feature that allowed people to let others know when they were not available to chat.

2. Yahoo! Messenger

Yahoo! Messenger was launched in 1998 and quickly became a favorite among users. It had features such as online games, the ability to change your avatar, and the ability to send files to other users. Yahoo! Messenger, in many ways, was ahead of its time, and it remained popular until its eventual shutdown in 2018.

3. MSN Messenger

MSN Messenger, later rebranded as Windows Live Messenger, was launched in 1999 and quickly became popular among Windows users. MSN Messenger allowed users to send and receive messages in real-time and also had features such as emoticons, webcam support, and the ability to play games with friends.

4. ICQ

ICQ, launched in 1996, was one of the earliest instant messaging services and was popular among international users. One of ICQ’s most significant features was the ability to search for other users by their ICQ number, which was a unique identifier assigned to each user.

5. Google Talk

Google Talk, launched in 2005, was a simple but effective instant messaging service that was integrated into Google’s suite of services. It allowed users to send and receive messages in real-time and also had features such as voice and video calls.