Instant Messaging Split to Continue

Instant messaging (IM) and other forms of real-time communications, such as voice and video, are becoming more common in business. Microsoft wants to capitalize on this trend, but its multiple IM clients and servers create a confusing picture that could cause enterprises to delay adoption. The picture will become somewhat clearer with the release of “Greenwich,” a server-based product for internal business communication-moving forward, Greenwich and Windows Messenger will be Microsoft’s preferred products for businesses, and all other IM products will be geared toward consumers or phased out. (See the sidebar “First Greenwich Beta Released“.)

This situation arose because multiple product groups with different business goals-MSN, Exchange, and Windows, among others-have all developed incompatible IM products over time, and Microsoft is reluctant to sacrifice the business needs of any of these groups. Inconsistent branding and an industrywide transition in underlying IM technology have also contributed to the chaos.