Industries thrive when there is just one standard to adopt. E-mail has become much more pervasive because of the SMTP protocol; the video industry grew quickly because VHS won out over beta; IBM ...

First popularized by adolescents sharing gossip and homework tips, instant messaging is going mainstream: In the U.S. 13.4 million people are IM-ing (yes, it has become a verb) at work, each averaging ...

Does Gmail want to be an instant messaging client? Last month the popular webmail app shipped an emoji reactions bar in the mobile app, where a single tap would send a new email with your emoji ...

A recent report from Burton Group, "Instant Messaging: It's Not Just Idle Chatter," has highlighted the necessity of creating policies to govern the use of instant messaging (IM) within a company.

Consider this scenario: You have your whole staff assembled for a planning meeting. People have their laptops and Blackberries to take notes and respond to urgent e-mails. Two employees in the back of ...

Instant messaging (IM) conjures up images of bored teenagers using a software-based gossiping tool. Most IM programs are free, and few competing products can talk to one another, making skeptics ...

IM (INSTANT MESSAGING) is changing corporate communications, and it’s doing so without the prodding or even the approval of executives and IT managers. Combining the real-time advantages of a phone ...