“Executives from eight prominent online companies have sent a
letter to the Senate Commerce Committee asking the committee to
review America Online Inc.’s refusal to allow users of other
instant-messaging products to communicate with its AOL Instant
Messenger subscribers.”
“The letter, sent Wednesday, is the latest salvo in an ongoing
war between AOL and a host of high-profile rivals over
instant-messaging interoperability.”
“In the letter, signed by executives from Microsoft Corp.,
AT&T Corp., Tribal Voice Inc. and others, AOL is accused of not
holding up its end of an agreement made last year to work toward a
standard for instant messaging that would allow all users,
regardless of provider, to communicate with each other.”