Instant Messaging (IM) is a form of text-based communication in which two persons participate in a single conversation over their computers or mobile devices within an Internet-based chatroom. IM was invented in 1971 by computer scientist Murray Turoff to be used as a chat function on a government computer network. Its original purpose was to exchange information that would help the U.S. government during emergencies. This was a very primitive form of instant messaging, but the first large-scale instant messaging was released by AOL in 1988. By the early 2000s, there were a few different versions of instant messaging on the internet with different platforms for different computer systems.
Instant Messaging is used in every country and has dramatically increased interconnectedness around the world. People use apps like Facebook, Snapchat, and WhatsApp to communicate daily. Instant messaging is popular for many reasons like its speed and lack of invasiveness compared to phone calls or in-person conversations. The instant messaging chat software market was worth $47.92 Billion in 2019 and will continue to increase. This has created many jobs and opportunities for people around the world.
It has changed communication forever, but it comes with some negatives. There is a big problem with cyberbullying and instant messaging has contributed to that. It is easy for people to make fake accounts and bully or make fun of people. This has caused people to question of there should be more censorship on social media and has led to investigations on platforms like Facebook. Youtube took action and created a separate app for children but there is still talk about creating laws censoring what people can say on these social media platforms.
