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What shocked Verizon more: The Yahoo! mega-hack or that it runs AIM (for not much longer)?

AOL's instant chat app axed in time for Christmas

Your old ISP is finally going to kill off your old messaging software.

AOL said it will wind down AIM, its much-loved [fact check this plz - ed.] instant messenger service after 20 years of operation.

The now-Verizon-owned content network will pull the plug on December 15, disabling all remaining clients of the messaging tool. AOL (now operating under the Oath brand alongside the ridiculous Yahoo!) says it has no plans to offer any sort of replacement for the service.

The aim.com email service will not be affected, so you can still use those accounts.

Since most netizens likely haven't used AIM for years and won't get the notification, here's a full copy of AOL's email announcing the shutdown:

Dear AIM user,

We see that you've used AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) in the past, so we wanted to let you know that AIM will be discontinued and will no longer work as of December 15, 2017.

Before December 15, you can continue to use the service. After December 15, you will no longer have access to AIM and your data will be deleted. If you use an @aim.com email address, your email account will not be affected and you will still be able to send and receive email as usual.

We've loved working on AIM for you. From setting the perfect away message to that familiar ring of an incoming chat, AIM will always have a special place in our hearts. As we move forward, all of us at AOL (now Oath) are excited to continue building the next generation of iconic brands and life-changing products for users around the world.

You can visit our FAQ to learn more. Thank you for being an AIM user.

Sincerely, The AOL Instant Messenger team

Launched in 1997, AIM gained popularity in the early 2000s. By the end of the decade, however, use of standalone internet messenger services gave way to soaraway instant chat apps on smartphones and web-based messaging offered by social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Speaking of Twitter, the AIM posted this farewell video on the milliblogging site that helped slay it:

If, however, you're feeling nostalgic for those days and want to fire up a desktop messaging app, we hear ICQ is still going strong – as is IRC, of course. ®

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