What happened to ICQ, the pioneering computer chat program?

Long before WhatsApp or even MSN Messenger, another computer program was a favorite for online conversations, including in Brazil. THE ICQ It was widely used from the second half of the 1990s until the end of the next decade, marking a generation that pioneered the beginnings of the commercial internet.

It was one of the first instant messaging programs along with names like. Internet Relay Chat (IRC) And AOL Instant Messaging (AIM)It is gaining a large number of users who want to chat with acquaintances or make new friends.

But gradually the public turned to other services, and ICQ became only a memory of its most striking features, such as notification noise for new messages and identification number. But do you know what happened to this once popular service?

blooming for success

ICQ I was officially born in November 1996The result of an Israeli developer mirabilis. His name is an abbreviation that phonetically stands for: “I’m looking for you” or “I’m looking for you” in literal English translation. The flower logo represents: Mirabilis jalapaThe scientific name of the plant known here as Maravilha.

Instead of email, during registration each person was given a numerical combination used during login and to add other users, i.e. UINs. It’s not uncommon to find someone who uses the program and still remembers their personal code, even if it reaches up to nine digits.

Free and lightweight to download and install, ICQ quickly gained global fame. By 2001 it had over 100 million users worldwide – an even more impressive figure considering that we are talking about an era when PCs and online media became widespread.

It has also gradually gained new features such as file transfer, chat groups, and “Invisible” status so you can appear offline to others.

First complications

Part of ICQ’s problems had to do with the change of ownership. While still at the peak of its service in June 1998, Mirabilis acquired by rival AOL. The service remained relatively independent and spent twelve years under the control of this internet pioneer.

At a time when he was in crisis and ICQ was already in decline, Sold Messenger to Russian group Digital Sky Technologies in 2010. This company is the company we know today. Mail.RuIt is one of the most powerful technology groups in the country and owns Telegram.

From then on, ICQ ceased to be a priority for the company, becoming a rival that posed little threat to the likes of Google Talk and Skype, as well as the growing MSN.

ICQ has remained active and has attempted at least two major relaunches: one involving Android and iOS apps in 2014, and another in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, when remote communication became more frequent. There was now even encryption in chats and video conferencing support.

But none of these moments were enough to revive popularity; There were momentary increases in downloads, including WhatsApp being criticized for changes to its terms of use, but nothing to sustain this in the long term.

last leaves

On the other hand, ICQ started making news for bad reasons. In 2018, reports claimed that Russian spy agencies had access to user messages. It has also begun to be used by groups taking advantage of the poorly monitored environment to organize cybercrime and share illegal materials.

While ICQ was still live in September 2023, it was suspended by courts in Brazil for being used to share videos and images of sexual violence. With similar problems in other countries and only occasional updates, Mail.Ru decided to close the activities of the messenger after 28 years in the air.

Inside June 26, 2024ICQ has officially ceased to exist and its entire service has been discontinued. Despite the controversial end of his life, those who spoke during the program’s heyday have fond memories of a time when online communication was still in its infancy.