2 - How Does IM Work?

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the ever-growing prevalence of instant messaging (IM) usage, both at home and in the workplace. The widespread usage of IM continues to move it from a public forum to a commonplace tool in enterprise workplaces. The chapter distinguishes between the presence service and the IM service, introducing specific terminology that is used in the IM world. An overview of the working of IM, from download and installation of a client to subscription and activation, is presented. The chapter also compares the basic IM features across four of the major public IM solution providers, and describes some of the additional considerations that must be considered by the enterprise IM (EIM) implementers before deciding whether or not to introduce IM into their environment. Although, IM usage is gaining momentum, it is still a decision that a manager should not make lightly, as it introduces other factors into the business, such as policy changes, disposition of records, management of evidentiary materials, training, and susceptibility to malware attacks. A company could be held responsible if its negligent use of IM did harm in some manner to another company or to an individual during the course of business. The field of IM is still a new evolving area of interest in the legal offices of corporations around the world and much more needs to be done to standardize practices in this area.