Microsoft to pull plug on free chat

MSN chat services will be suspended in most countries Oct. 14

By Robert McMillan

September 24, 2003 12:00 PM ET

Recommended

IDG News Service - Microsoft Corp. is pulling the plug on its free chat service in all but four countries, the company said yesterday.
Citing a rise in spam and offensive material, the company plans to eliminate MSN chat services completely in 28 countries while restricting access to chat groups in the U.S.
The changes will be effective Oct. 14, when MSN's chat services will be suspended in most countries they're currently available in, including Spain, France and Mexico, a Microsoft spokeswoman confirmed.
"MSN chat will become a subscription-only service in the U.S.," the spokeswoman said. "Anybody will be able to view the chat rooms, but you must have a subscription to MSN to participate," she said. This means that U.S. users who want to use Microsoft's Chat.msn.com chat site will now have to pay at least the $19.95 fee for MSN Extra Storage program, she said.
Not all free chat services will disappear, however. Users in Canada, Japan, New Zealand and Brazil will still have access to free moderated chat, she said. MSN subscribers in Canada and Japan will also have the option of unmoderated chat, she said.
Microsoft is making the changes to protect customers, who were being inundated with inappropriate material. "Basically, it was an effort to provide a more safe and secure online experience," the spokeswoman said.

Reprinted with permission from

IDG.net
Story copyright 2009 International Data Group. All rights reserved.

Recommend Digg Twitter ShareThis

Email Print Send Feedback Reprints

Jump to comments

Networking

Additional Resources

WHITE PAPER

Do You Know the 7 Steps to Successful Data Migration?

Approximately 60 percent of data migration projects overrun time or budget, while some fail completely. Download this white paper, "Enhancing Your Chance for Successful Data Migration," to learn the critical steps you need to take to execute a data migration project with minimum cost and risk to your business.

WHITE PAPER

Total Cost of Ownership of Server Computing Vs. PCs

Read the Gartner research note to learn why the TCO of a server-based computing deployment used to deliver all applications to users is around 50% lower than that of an unmanaged desktop deployment.

WHITE PAPER

IDC White Paper: Linux in a Global Recession

Economic downturns have a tendency to accelerate emerging technologies, boost the adoption of effective solutions, and punish solutions that are not cost competitive or that are out of synch with industry trends. This IDC White Paper presents the results of an IDC survey of 330 companies in Western Europe, Asia/Pacific and the Americas that measures the receptiveness to Linux and takes into consideration changing views driven by the disruptive economic environment that businesses face today.