Proposed AOL-Mirabilis Merger Draws Fire

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May 21, 1998 (3:02 PM EDT)

By Andy Patrizio,

The news that America Online is in talks to acquire Mirabilis -- the maker of the ICQ Internet instant messaging software -- was met with disapproval by Internet users.

"AOL should be its own service, with its own perks," said Fred Peterson, a programmer at an insurance company in Waunakee, Wis. "ICQ was developed by Internet users. ICQ is AOL's way of pushing itself into the faces of millions of people who want absolutely nothing to do with it."

ICQ is one of the fastest-growing Internet features on the Internet. It has more than 11 million subscribers and adds 57,000 every day. With more than 500,000 people logged on to ICQ and its website, Tel Aviv, Israel-based Mirabilis is ranked No. 4 on the Internet in usage, behind Yahoo, Microsoft, and Netscape.

The one element of the proposed acquisition that really rubbed ICQ users the wrong way was the possibility that AOL would send out ad banners to ICQ users, which it does to its Instant Messenger users. "If I start getting innundated with ads, I'll probably stick with e-mail and [Internet Relay Chat] to keep in contact with people," said Christian Antkow, a game designer with id Software.

"If AOL doesn't break anything with the current ICQ," Antkow said, "I'd be more than happy to stay with it."

Peterson said he would also stay with ICQ if it stayed the same. "The only way I would surely leave ICQ is if AOL decided to charge for its use, or if it spammed its advertising," he said.

But there is some support for Dulles, Va.-based AOL. "The only thing AOL has going for it is its sense of community," said Brett Wagner, a Web designer and instructor in Seattle. "ICQ fits into its business plan of developing an online community. It isn't so much buying the software as buying the customer base."

Wagner said he might leave ICQ if ad banners pop up, depending on how they are used. He added, however, that giving it up would be difficult because he uses it so much.

Although the merger would be a big advantage for AOL, it could hurt ICQ -- and not just with the user community, according to Rob Enderle, senior analyst with The Giga Information Group.

"This merger moves ICQ from the minor leagues into the majors and positions it to remain a long-term and secure player in this rapidly changing market," said Enderle, who is also an ICQ user.

Enderle said the merger would make ICQ AOL-centric and questioned whether Internet users will just gripe or actually switch to instant message alternatives, like Tribal Voice's PowWow.

"It will also make it more difficult for ICQ to be a standard in and of itself because ISPs that view AOL as a competitor will likely avoid the related technology," Enderle said.