A rchive Date
[ 15-06-2000 ]
Category
[ Information Technologies ]
sub-Categoy
[ AOL ]
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[http://www.forbes.com/
 
June 12, 2000
AOL Blocks Another Messaging System
By David Einstein
SILICON VALLEY. 2:20 PM EDT
A David versus Goliath battle is shaping up over instant messaging, and Goliath just gave David a shot to the head. Giant America Online (nyse: AOL) on June 11 blocked the technology of Odigo, two weeks after the tiny New York company unveiled a program that lets users of its messaging software communicate with users of AOL's market-leading Instant Messenger.
Odigo thus finds itself in the company of Microsoft (nasdaq: MSFT), Yahoo! (nasdaq: YHOO), AT&T (nyse: T) and Prodigy (nasdaq: PRGYA), all of which have attempted to make their messaging programs compatible with AOL Instant Messenger (AIM), only to have AOL lock them out.
In every case, says AOL spokeswoman Tricia Primrose, the Dulles, Va.-based online powerhouse prevented interoperability to protect the privacy and security of its own customers. "Essentially, they were all hacking into our servers," she says.
But Avner Ronen, co-founder of Odigo, thinks AOL may have pulled the plug on his company for another reason. "They might have seen the kind of user experience we offer and decided it was a direct threat to their dominance," he says. When messaging programs can interoperate, Ronen argues, users can choose one over another on the basis of the program itself rather than on how widely it is used.
AOL may have also taken issue with the fact that Odigo's software lets AIM users communicate directly with users of ICQ, breaking down a wall that AOL had kept in place since acquiring ICQ two years ago.
Between AIM, which claims some 91 million users, and ICQ, which boasts more than 62 million, AOL dominates the explosive market for instant messaging. Odigo is much smaller, with fewer than 750,000 users. But 100,000 of those have come on board since May 31, when the company introduced its AIM-friendly software.
Odigo officials had hoped that AOL would turn a blind eye toward its latest move--as was the case in January, when Odigo became interoperable with ICQ. AOL has made no attempt to block that.
When AOL dashed Odigo's hopes yesterday, Ronen lashed out. "AOL's blocking our interoperability is--for our young company and committed employees--an unfortunate manner in which to gain validation for our product," he says.
According to Ronen, Odigo has tried to get AOL's attention in order to negotiate a licensing agreement, but AOL has not returned its phone calls. "We'd like to contact them and come to an understanding," he says. AOL's Primrose says she knew of no reason why AOL officials would not respond to Odigo's overtures.
If AOL refuses to let Odigo users communicate with AIM users, Odigo says it will try to find a way around the blocking technology. That won't be easy: Microsoft tried the same thing last year, but after AOL blocked several new versions of its MSN Messenger the software giant threw in the towel.
Odigo may be minuscule compared to Microsoft, but that doesn't mean its engineers aren't as good when it comes to cracking AOL's blockade. Odigo has its roots in Israel, which is a world leader in encryption technology. And Ronen says his company's interoperability effort is being led by a guy "who codes faster than we write press releases."
"We promised our users that we will be interoperable with all message systems by the end of the year, and we're going to do it," he says.
Look out, Goliath. David's looking for a stone to sling at you.]
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