As originally announced back in October, AIM is officially shutting down tomorrow, December 15th. Largely the pioneer of online messaging, AIM has been around for 20 years, having originally launched all the way back in 1997…
The shutdown of AIM shouldn’t come as too big of a surprise. The service is no longer as popular as it once was and AOL (now Oath) has slowly started phasing out features. Back in March, for instance, AOL announced that it was cutting off third-party access to the Instant Messenger service.
The AOL website outlines some frequently asked questions about the AIM shutdown. For instance, AOL says that there is not currently a replacement product for AIM, but shares that Oath is “excited to continue bringing you new, iconic products and experiences.”
As for why AIM is shutting down, the company explains that it was time to move to the next-generation of products:
We know there are so many loyal fans who have used AIM for decades; and we loved working and building the first chat app of its kind since 1997. Our focus will always be on providing the kind of innovative experiences consumers want.
We’re more excited than ever to focus on building the next generation of iconic brands and life-changing products.
A couple of other housekeeping issues are addressed on the webpage. For instance, you must save your chat logs before December 15th – so you have just a few hours left to do so:
Yes, your chat history can be viewed and saved. In some cases this may depend on whether you previously disabled the option to save a copy of your chats on your computer or if you or your buddy selected the Go off the record option. Chat logs must be saved before December 15, 2017.
Head to AOL’s website about the AIM shutdown for all of the details. Are you going to miss AIM? Let us know and tell us your favorite memories down in the comments.
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