Say Goodbye To AOL Instant Messenger (AIM)

Verizon Oath, which owns the AOL, has announced that AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) will be shut down on that date on December 15. When AIM was first launched in 1997, it became extremely popular for online chatting and defined many of the design themes still in use for messaging. The death toll for AIM has been ringing for several years now, with Facebook Messenger, Google, Slack, WhatsApp, and other multi-platform messaging services have stole AIMs thunder. Oath made the impending closure of AIM official through posts on Twitter and Tumblr, without announcing a replacement or any way to archive messages sent in the past. Thoughts ?

Verizon Buys AOL For $4.4 Billion

Verizon Communications has agreed to buy AOL for $4.4 billion, as it looks to build more extensive digital and video platforms for future growth. Verizon’s acquisition plan further drives its LTE wireless video and OTT (over-the-top) video strategy, adding that its plan is to deliver services to customers over a global multiscreen network platform. AOL’s key assets include its subscription business, Media brands such as The Huffington Post, TechCrunch, Engadget, Makers and AOL.com, as well as original video content, according to Verizon. The transaction is subject to the usual regulatory approvals, but the companies expect to close the deal this summer. What do you think of this transaction ? Is it a good thing or a bad thing ? 

Apple Dropping AOL Sign In Support For iTunes And App Store

If you’re still using your AOL account to log into iTunes. Apple has just announced that customers who use an AOL username to sign in to iTunes will need to convert to an Apple ID before March 31st. Apple’s partnership with AOL began back in 2003. Since then, anyone who wants to buy something from iTunes, the App Store, or the iBookstore could use their AOL account name, instead of setting up a separate Apple ID. Apple said that customers who use an AOL Username to sign in to the iTunes Store, App Store, or iBookstore must convert to an Apple ID before March 31, 2015.