Wednesday, July 19th 2006
AOL Launches Free AIM Pro Client
After one month in testing, AOL on Wednesday dropped the beta moniker from its corporate instant messaging client, officially launching AIM Pro. The new client was designed by WebEx and is targeting business users with collaboration features powered by the company.
AOL hopes to ride the growing wave of instant messaging in the enterprise with AIM Pro. AIM Pro's biggest improvements have been made under the hood, Brian Curry, vice president of Business Services at AOL, told BetaNews. Security has been bolstered with SSL encryption when sending messages between two AIM Pro users. AOL is also offering an automatic virus scanning service, which routes file transfers through the company's network.
AOL is now supporting e-mail addresses as screen names in AIM Pro, a feature requested by business customers. Users can validate their e-mail address and use it in lieu of picking an AOL username.
Audio and video conferencing has also been improved from the standard AIM client using technology from WebEx's MediaTone network. Up to 10 AIM Pro users can participate in a voice chat, although video will be limited to two individuals. AOL expects to introduce 4-way video conferencing in the near future.
WebEx is additionally providing its desktop sharing functionality within AIM Pro. Users can let one other person see their Windows desktop and collaborate with them on projects or give a demonstration. Multi-party desktop sharing will also be delivered as a premium service at a later date, Curry said.
Source:
Betanews
AOL hopes to ride the growing wave of instant messaging in the enterprise with AIM Pro. AIM Pro's biggest improvements have been made under the hood, Brian Curry, vice president of Business Services at AOL, told BetaNews. Security has been bolstered with SSL encryption when sending messages between two AIM Pro users. AOL is also offering an automatic virus scanning service, which routes file transfers through the company's network.
AOL is now supporting e-mail addresses as screen names in AIM Pro, a feature requested by business customers. Users can validate their e-mail address and use it in lieu of picking an AOL username.
Audio and video conferencing has also been improved from the standard AIM client using technology from WebEx's MediaTone network. Up to 10 AIM Pro users can participate in a voice chat, although video will be limited to two individuals. AOL expects to introduce 4-way video conferencing in the near future.
WebEx is additionally providing its desktop sharing functionality within AIM Pro. Users can let one other person see their Windows desktop and collaborate with them on projects or give a demonstration. Multi-party desktop sharing will also be delivered as a premium service at a later date, Curry said.
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