MSN Chat will shut down in most countries and become a subscription service in the United States. Closing chat, which enables users to hold real-time text conversations in virtual "rooms," will help MSN boost its subscription services as the unit continues to drive toward profitability.

MSN Chat currently hosts hundreds of rooms on topics such as computing, entertainment, and specific cities. Chat users can also create their own temporary rooms for personal topics. MSN Chat differs from the .NET Messenger public instant messaging (IM) service, which enables real-time exchanges of text messages like chat does, but which does not have "rooms" in which any user can join.

The service will end Oct. 14, 2003, in most countries. In the United States, Canada, and Japan, the service will remain available to subscribers; U.S. subscribers will be able to purchase MSN Chat access along with Extra Storage (which offers storage space for Hotmail inboxes, among other things) for US$19.95 per year. Chat will also be available to subscribers of other MSN services, such as MSN 8. Brazil, Canada, Japan and New Zealand will also continue to offer some free "moderated" chat rooms (in which all comments sent to the chat room must be first approved by a designated user). In other countries, Microsoft recommends that chat users employ .NET Messenger with the latest MSN Messenger client, which enables IM sessions among up to 15 users per window.

Microsoft says that limiting chat to subscribers will enhance the quality and security of the service for the remaining users. It will discourage spammers who bombard chat users with commercial messages and could also give pause to undesirables such as pedophiles who use the anonymity of chat to search for potential victims. Both have contributed to declining chat usage in some markets, according to Microsoft.

However, the move will also boost subscription services like Extra Storage and MSN 8. Closing MSN Chat could also draw more users to .NET Messenger. While that service is currently free, it will likely be the kernel of future subscription-based communication services for consumers.

The main MSN Chat site is chat.msn.com. Further information on the U.S. subscription service is at chat.msn.com/editorial/en-us/Content/standalone3/chatsubscription.htm.