The struggling online service provider yesterday launched a public beta of an SME version of its consumer instant messaging service, called AIM Pro Professional Edition, and next week plans to beta an enterprise version.
Dulles, Virginia-based AOL abandoned its first business IM ambitions back in mid-2004, when it dumped its AIM Enterprise Gateway, apparently for lack of user interest. AOL, along with Yahoo Inc, got into enterprise IM at roughly the same time as Microsoft Corp, in 2002. Yahoo has since ditched is corporate IM aspirations too.
But it seems to be the season for vendor optimistic about corporate IM. In April, Verizon Business launched a hosted IM service for enterprises, which promised to guard against viruses, worms and IM spam, known as SPIM.
And enterprise IM startup Antepo Inc, based in New York, last month nabbed an undisclosed amount of venture capital financing. Several security outfits, notably Barracuda, Fortinet, MessageLabs and Symantec, also have recently been working to shore up enterprise IM.
AOL’s new beta AIM Pro PE is a more corporate version of AOL’s existing IM application. It can synch with Microsoft Outlook and also lets users to click to get video conferencing and shared desktops via WebEx Communications Inc.
AOL and Santa Clara, California-based WebEx having been working for some time to integrate their wares. But the terms of the enterprise IM deal were not disclosed.
AOL, which is owned by media conglomerate Time Warner Inc, first announced its corporate IM intentions in February.
AOL next week sometime will also put into public beta a beefier version of its business IM application, called AIM Pro Enterprise Edition. This version would boast centralized admin controls for large enterprises. Also, it would include the AIM invitation program that promises to make it easier to join a videoconference, as well as on-board security features.
AOL spokesperson Krista Thomas said commercial versions both applications would launch in the fall. The SME Professional version would incur a nominal subscription fee, while the Enterprise edition would have more hefty subscription. AOL is not yet talking specific prices, but Thomas said both products’ subscription fees would be charged on a per seat basis.
Betas of both versions of the IM are free.
AOL has also revamped Netscape, the company it bought in 1999 that has morphed from browser to media site and now, its latest incarnation, a Web 2.0-like social news portal and blog, along the lines of Digg.com.
Netscape, which AOL bought in 1999, will also be re-launched. The new Netscape, currently also in beta, has groups of links to news articles. Within each category of news, links are ranked by popularity, based on user votes.
A group of Netscape editors will blog and report on some news too, and also will help decide what news will be prominently featured on the site, unlike Digg.
