America Online is offering blog services to those who sign up for its free instant-messenger, the company announced Friday, writes CNET. Though signing up for an IM screen is required for access to the once proprietary AOL Journals section, users are not required to download AOL's client software. Launched in 2003, the blog pages have attracted half a million users. AOL's primary rivals, Google and Yahoo, also offer free blogging sites. Among the features offered in AOL's expanded blog service is the ability to update the journals directly from AIM, including the option to do so via mobile devices. Earlier this week AOL took the wraps off of its next-generation IM application, named Triton, which aims to further blend text and voice conversations with games and file and photo sharing.
