Instant Messaging Planet: Much Ado About IM Patents

Microsoft patented an instant message feature whereby users can be notified that an IM recipient is in the process of typing a message back. Several IM applications have already implemented this feature, and it is unclear if any had developed the technology prior to the patent application.

Not much has been heard about AOL's monster IM patent that covers much current IM functionality, including notification of the presence of different IM'ers on the network and the use of user lists. For those seeking to bust these and other IM patents with examples of prior art, they can look at the Dartmouth College application Broadcast that came out in 1989.