MSN Messenger (also known colloquially simply as "Messenger"), later rebranded as Windows Live Messenger, was a cross-platform instant-messaging client developed by

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washi ...

. It connected to the

Microsoft Messenger service Messenger (formerly MSN Messenger Service, .NET Messenger Service and Windows Live Messenger Service) was an instant messaging and presence system developed by Microsoft in 1999 for use with its MSN Messenger software. It was used by instant me ...

and, in later versions, was compatible with

Yahoo! Messenger Yahoo! Messenger (sometimes abbreviated Y!M) was an advertisement-supported instant messaging client (computing), client and associated protocol provided by Yahoo!. Yahoo! Messenger was provided free of charge and could be downloaded and used wit ...

and

Facebook Messenger Messenger is a proprietary instant messaging app and platform developed by Meta Platforms. Originally developed as Facebook Chat in 2008, the company revamped its messaging service in 2010, released standalone iOS and Android apps in 2011, and ...

. Versions were developed for

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for se ...

Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generati ...

Mac OS X macOS (; previously OS X and originally Mac OS X) is a Unix operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc. since 2001. It is the primary operating system for Apple's Mac computers. Within the market of desktop and lap ...

(later under the name Microsoft Messenger for Mac),

BlackBerry OS BlackBerry OS is a discontinued proprietary mobile operating system developed by Canadian company BlackBerry Limited for its BlackBerry line of smartphone handheld devices. The operating system provides multitasking and supports specialized i ...

, iOS,

Java ME Java Platform, Micro Edition or Java ME is a computing platform for development and deployment of portable code for embedded and mobile devices (micro-controllers, sensors, gateways, mobile phones, personal digital assistants, TV set-top ...

, S60 on

Symbian OS Symbian is a discontinued mobile operating system (OS) and computing platform designed for smartphones. It was originally developed as a proprietary software OS for personal digital assistants in 1998 by the Symbian Ltd. consortium. Symbian OS ...

9.x,

MSN TV MSN TV (formerly WebTV) was a web access product consisting of a thin client device that used a television for display (instead of using a computer monitor), and the online service that supported it. The device design and service was developed ...

Zune HD The Zune HD is a portable media player in the Zune product family released on September 15, 2009, by Microsoft. It was a direct competitor with Apple's iPod Touch series of mobile devices. It was initially released in 16 and 32 GB capacities. A ...

Windows Phone Windows Phone (WP) is a discontinued family of mobile operating systems developed by Microsoft for smartphones as the replacement successor to Windows Mobile and Zune. Windows Phone featured a new user interface derived from the Metro design lan ...

Windows Mobile Windows Mobile is a discontinued family of mobile operating systems developed by Microsoft for smartphones and personal digital assistants. Its origin dated back to Windows CE in 1996, though Windows Mobile itself first appeared in 2000 as Pock ...

and

Windows CE Windows Embedded Compact, formerly Windows Embedded CE, Windows Powered and Windows CE, is an operating system subfamily developed by Microsoft as part of its Windows Embedded family of products. Unlike Windows Embedded Standard, which is base ...

. The client was first released as MSN Messenger Service on July 22, 1999, and was marketed under the

MSN MSN (meaning Microsoft Network) is a web portal and related collection of Internet services and apps for Windows and mobile devices, provided by Microsoft and launched on August 24, 1995, alongside the release of Windows 95. The Microsoft Net ...

brand until 2005, when it was rebranded under the

Windows Live Windows Live is a discontinued brand name for a set of web services and software products developed by Microsoft as part of its software-as-a-service platform. Chief components under the brand name included web services (all of which were expose ...

name. It has since been officially known by the latter name, although its first name remained in common use. In June 2009, Microsoft reported the service attracted over 330 million active users each month, placing it among the most widely used instant-messaging clients in the world. Following its acquisition of

Skype Technologies Skype Technologies S.A.R.L (also known as Skype Software S.A.R.L, Skype Communications S.A.R.L, Skype Inc., and Skype Limited) is a Luxembourgish telecommunications company headquartered in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg, whose chief business is th ...

in May 2011, Microsoft added interoperability between

Skype Skype () is a proprietary telecommunications application operated by Skype Technologies, a division of Microsoft, best known for VoIP-based videotelephony, videoconferencing and voice calls. It also has instant messaging, file transfer, debi ...

and

Microsoft account A Microsoft account or MSA (previously known as Microsoft Passport, .NET Passport, and Windows Live ID) is a single sign-on Microsoft user account for Microsoft customers to log in to Microsoft services (like Outlook.com), devices running on ...

s, allowing Skype—which had features unique to its platform and a wider user base—to communicate with Windows Live Messenger contacts. In 2013, the product was discontinued, and Microsoft began cutting service to existing clients. It remained active in China for another 18 months and ceased operations there on October 31, 2014.

History

MSN Messenger 1.0–7.5 (1999–2005)

Before the product was renamed Windows Live Messenger, it was named "MSN Messenger" from 1999 to 2006. During that time, Microsoft released seven major versions as follows. The first version of MSN Messenger Service, version 1.0 (1.0.0863), was released July 22, 1999. It included only basic features, such as plain text messaging and a simplistic contact list. When it was first released, it featured support for access to

America Online AOL (stylized as Aol., formerly a company known as AOL Inc. and originally known as America Online) is an American web portal and online service provider based in New York City. It is a brand marketed by the current incarnation of Yahoo! Inc. ...

's AIM network. America Online continually tried to block Microsoft from having access to their service until eventually the feature was removed, and it has not re-surfaced in any later versions of the software. AOL did this by exploiting a buffer overflow bug in AIM, which causes it to execute a bit of machine code sent by the server. When this code runs, it determines if the client is AIM and sends a message back to verify the client. Since then, the software has only allowed connections to its own service, requiring a Windows Live ID (.NET Passport at that time) account to connect. Microsoft released the first major update, version 2.0 (2.0.0083), on November 16, 1999. It included a rotating advertising banner and the ability to customize the appearance of the chat window. It came as an install option for

Windows Me Windows Millennium Edition, or Windows Me (marketed with the pronunciation of the pronoun "me"), is an operating system developed by Microsoft as part of its Windows 9x family of Microsoft Windows operating systems. It is the successor to Windo ...

. This version was followed the next year by version 3.0 (3.0.0080), which was released May 29, 2000. It included file transfers and PC-to-PC and PC-to-phone audio capabilities with Net2Phone and Callserve, two of the larger

VoIP Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), also called IP telephony, is a method and group of technologies for the delivery of voice communications and multimedia sessions over Internet Protocol (IP) networks, such as the Internet. The terms Internet t ...

providers. Along with the release of

Windows XP Windows XP is a major release of Microsoft's Windows NT operating system. It was release to manufacturing, released to manufacturing on August 24, 2001, and later to retail on October 25, 2001. It is a direct upgrade to its predecessors, Wind ...

came version 4.6 of MSN Messenger, on October 23, 2001. It included major changes to the user interface, the ability to group contacts, and support for voice conversations. In this version, the client software was renamed from "MSN Messenger Service" to just "MSN Messenger", while the underlying service became known as " .NET Messenger Service". This version was only compatible with

Windows 95 Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented operating system developed by Microsoft as part of its Windows 9x family of operating systems. The first operating system in the 9x family, it is the successor to Windows 3.1x, and was released to manufacturi ...

, 98, ME, NT 4.0, and

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...

, because Microsoft provided a scaled-down new program for

, called Windows Messenger. Version 5.0 of MSN Messenger was released on October 24, 2002. It was the first version that was allowed to be installed along with Windows Messenger on Windows XP. It included

UPnP Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) is a set of networking protocols that permits networked devices, such as personal computers, printers, Internet gateways, Wi-Fi access points and mobile devices to seamlessly discover each other's presence on the n ...

(Universal Plug and Play) based file transfers, minor changes to the

user interface In the industrial design field of human–computer interaction, a user interface (UI) is the space where interactions between humans and machines occur. The goal of this interaction is to allow effective operation and control of the machine f ...

artwork, and a

Windows Media Player Windows Media Player (WMP) is the first media player and media library application that was developed by Microsoft for playing audio, video and viewing images on personal computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system, as well as ...

interface plug-in. Version 6.0 of MSN Messenger was released July 17, 2003. MSN Messenger 6.0 was a major overhaul of the whole platform, upgrading its simple text-based interface to include customizable elements such as emoticons, personalized avatars, and backgrounds. An update, version 6.1, focused on improvements to the conversation window, enabling users to hide the window frame and menu bar, and also the ability to change the theme color. The theme color could be set differently for each user. Another update, version 6.2, was released April 22, 2004, and it was the last version of the MSN Messenger 6 series. The most notable changes were a dedicated ''Mobile'' group for mobile contacts, a connection troubleshooter, and the ''Launch Site'' feature was renamed to ''Fun & Games''. MSN Messenger received a major upgrade to version 7.0 on April 7, 2005. This version brought

wink A wink is a facial expression made by briefly closing one eye. A wink is an informal mode of non-verbal communication usually signaling shared hidden knowledge or intent. However, it is ambiguous by itself and highly dependent upon additional c ...

features that were previously only available in threedegrees. This version also advertised items to sell to you including animated

display pictures In computing, an avatar is a graphical representation of a User (computing), user or the user's Player character, character or persona. Avatars can be two-dimensional Computer icon, icons in Internet forums and other online communities, where ...

emoticons An emoticon (, , rarely , ), short for "emotion icon", also known simply as an emote, is a pictorial representation of a facial expression using characters—usually punctuation marks, numbers, and letters—to express a person's feelings ...

and backgrounds. The contact list window style was also updated to match instant message windows. This version also introduced the

Xbox Live The Xbox network, formerly and still sometimes branded as Xbox Live, is an online multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft. It was first made available to the Xbox system on November 15, 2002. A ...

Integration feature. This version also introduced digital ink and handwriting recognition support. It is the last version of MSN Messenger to support Windows 98, Windows Me and Windows 2000. The last version of MSN Messenger before the name change, version 7.5, was released August 23, 2005. New features included the Dynamic Backgrounds feature and the "msnim" protocol handler, which allowed Web sites to provide links which automatically add a contact or start conversations. Additionally, a new Voice Clips feature allowed users to hold down F2 and record a message for a maximum of 15 seconds and send it to the recipient. The window for conversations was changed slightly with an added video button. This version also introduced the

Windows Installer Windows Installer (msiexec.exe, previously known as Microsoft Installer, codename Darwin) is a software component and application programming interface (API) of Microsoft Windows used for the installation, maintenance, and removal of software. ...

for its auto-update feature.

Windows Live Messenger 8.0–8.5 (2005–2009)

As part of Microsoft's

effort, which rebranded many existing MSN services and programs, MSN Messenger was renamed "Windows Live Messenger" beginning with version 8.0. The first beta of the newly renamed Windows Live Messenger, Beta 1, was released on December 13, 2005. Major changes and additions included offline messaging, an option to change the color theme of the windows, separated send and search boxes, a word wheel search box in the main window, and additional details for contacts when hovering over their names in the contact list window. The second beta of version 8.0, Beta 2, was released on February 26, 2006. The overall theme of this version was improved, fixing and improving several smaller places in the program. Major changes and additions included the introduction of

Windows Live Contacts Outlook.com is a webmail service that is part of the Microsoft 365 product family. It offers mail, calendaring, contacts, and tasks services. Founded in 1996 by Sabeer Bhatia and Jack Smith as Hotmail, it was acquired by Microsoft in 19 ...

, the reintroduction of single file transfer, improvements to the "Add a Contact" dialog box, improved color themes, minor changes in the conversation window, and revert of the "Busy" status icon back to the normal dash icon. The final beta version, Beta 3, was released on May 2, 2006. Major changes and additions included new icons for the program, PC-to-phone calling, an updated look for the Windows Live Call window, a new default display picture, the Windows Live Today window, improvements to the grouping of sequential messages from each contact, Rhapsody integration in the U.S., and an option for sounds to be edited and/or turned off. The official release of Windows Live Messenger version 8.0 was on June 19, 2006. Although no notable changes were made between Beta 3 and the final version, the change from MSN Messenger to Windows Live Messenger brought some additional changes, such as customization for the nicknames of individual contacts, timestamps on messages, the ability to see a contact's name only once if the same person writes multiple messages in a row, and

color schemes In color theory, a color scheme is the choice of colors used in various artistic and design contexts. For example, the "Achromatic" use of a white background with black text is an example of a basic and commonly default color scheme in web de ...

for the entire application. The main authentication system,

Microsoft Passport Network A Microsoft account or MSA (previously known as Microsoft Passport, .NET Passport, and Windows Live ID) is a single sign-on Microsoft user account for Microsoft customers to log in to Microsoft services (like Outlook.com), devices running on one ...

, was replaced with Windows Live ID at the same time. A refresh to version 8.0 was released on August 10, 2006. It included audio and video improvements and fixed up minor bugs. The first update to Windows Live Messenger was previewed on October 30, 2006, with the release of Beta 1 of version 8.1. No major changes were made, but several minor changes were included. These include the addition of the roaming identity feature (so that the same user's display name and picture would appear on any computer), a new contact card appearance, a "recently used" list for the emoticon, wink, display picture and background menus, an SMS phone book in the main menu allowing the association and editing of a phone number to the contact and allowing text messaging to a contact, a "sign out" button, a "report abuse" option in the help menu, interoperability with

, and improvements to user status on

Windows Vista Windows Vista is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was the direct successor to Windows XP, which was released five years before, at the time being the longest time span between successive releases of ...

A minor update, the Windows Live Messenger 8.1 Beta 1 Refresh, was released on December 13, 2006, and fixed bugs that were causing some people to be unable to sign in and others unable to see their contact list. The final version 8.1 was released on January 29, 2007. No changes were made from the Beta 1 Refresh. All versions of Windows Live Messenger below version 8.1 were rendered obsolete on September 12, 2007, due to a security issue identified when a user accepts a webcam or video chat invitation from an attacker.Windows Live Messenger blog: Upgrading to 8.1
. Messengersays.spaces.live.com (September 12, 2007). Retrieved on April 20, 2012. On September 12, 2007, the Windows Live Messenger blog posted a fix that resolved a security problem. It reported of a security vulnerability in versions of Messenger older than 8.1, that the released fix would resolve. This led to an auto-update being released to all older versions. Versions running on Windows 2000 and below were required to update to a new version of MSN Messenger 7.0, and versions running on Windows XP and above were required to update to Windows Live Messenger 8.1. On August 27, 2009, the Windows Live Messenger blog posted that due to a security problem, all users of versions 8.1 and newer need to update to the latest version, 14.0.8089. The mandatory upgrade requirement would be fully phased in by late October 2009 and began on September 15, 2009. The first beta of Windows Live Messenger 8.5, Beta 1, was released on May 31, 2007. An update was released on June 21, 2007, to test updates being installed by

Microsoft Update Windows Update is a Microsoft service for the Windows 9x and Windows NT families of operating system, which automates downloading and installing Microsoft Windows software updates over the Internet. The service delivers software updates for Wind ...

. This version required Windows XP SP2, compared to previous versions requiring Windows XP SP1. It was the first version to be installed in a "Windows Live" folder under "Program Files", with the shortcuts placed in a "Windows Live" folder in the

Start Menu The Start menu is a graphical user interface element used in Microsoft Windows since Windows 95 and in other operating systems. It provides a central launching point for computer programs and performing other tasks in the Windows shell. It is name ...

. Major changes and additions in Beta 1 included a new installation program in conjunction with the release of Windows Live 2.0, a new look for all of its windows that matches the aesthetic styles of Windows Vista, a new "bunny" emoticon, and integration with Windows Live OneCare Family Safety. Beginning with this version, updates could be downloaded and installed through

. The second beta of Windows Live Messenger 8.5, Beta 2, was released on September 5, 2007. Several issues were fixed in Beta 2, but no significant changes were applied. Compared with the first beta, the build does not say "Beta" on the top of the window, although developers had noted that it was not the final release. The new

Windows Live Installer Windows Essentials (formerly Windows Live Essentials and Windows Live Installer) is a discontinued suite of Microsoft freeware applications that includes email, instant messaging, photo sharing, blogging, and parental control software. ''Essentia ...

, which is used to install Windows Live Messenger 8.5 Beta 2, does not run on Windows Server 2003. The final release of Windows Live Messenger version 8.5 was released on November 6, 2007, and it introduced no major changes.

Windows Live Messenger 14.0–16.4 (2009–2012)

Windows Live Messenger 2009 was originally designated version 9.0, it was later assigned the technical version number 14.0, in order to be unified with the other

programs and

Microsoft Office Microsoft Office, or simply Office, is the former name of a family of client software, server software, and services developed by Microsoft. It was first announced by Bill Gates on August 1, 1988, at COMDEX in Las Vegas. Initially a marketin ...

programs. In a presentation to the Georgia Institute of Technology's IEEE Student Branch, Microsoft employee Andrew Jenks reported that the Messenger team had been working on multi-person audio/video chat, and they are also attempting to create interoperability with AIM/

XMPP Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP, originally named Jabber) is an open communication protocol designed for instant messaging (IM), presence information, and contact list maintenance. Based on XML (Extensible Markup Language), i ...

/ ICQ. There is a basic internal version that works with XMPP already. However, these features were not seen in any versions of Windows Live Messenger 2009. Microsoft sent an invitation to participate in the Windows Live Messenger "9" beta program to Microsoft Connect members on November 20, 2007; a week later, Microsoft began sending out emails welcoming them to the Windows Live Messenger "9" beta program for the first release, known as Beta 0. A fan site for Windows Live Messenger, Mess.be, claimed to have a new build of Windows Live Messenger "9" on August 11, 2008, and published screenshots along with a brief summary of new features. The screenshots featured a new user interface design matching the "

Wave 3 WAVE (channel 3) is a television station in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, affiliated with NBC and owned by Gray Television. The station's studios are located on South Floyd Street in downtown Louisville, and its transmitter is located in ...

" design in development by Microsoft. The images were later removed by the site after a

DMCA The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) is a 1998 United States copyright law that implements two 1996 treaties of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). It criminalizes production and dissemination of technology, devices, or ...

notice was received.News post at Mess.be of exclusive 9.0 build
. Mess.be. Retrieved on April 20, 2012. The installer for the same build was leaked through private forums on August 23, 2008. It would later be discovered this build was a preview of Milestone 2, or M2. News web site LiveSide published an article on September 4, 2008, with screenshots of M2 of the newly minted "Windows Live Messenger 2009", which had become version 14.0 instead of 9.0 as previously expected. LiveSide summarized its new features, including protection against

messaging spam Messaging spam, sometimes called SPIM, is a type of spam targeting users of instant messaging (IM) services, SMS, or private messages within websites. Instant messaging applications Instant messaging systems, such as Telegram, WhatsApp, Twitte ...

, the ability to stay signed into the application from several computers (referred to as "Multiple Points of Presence Support"),

animated GIF The Graphics Interchange Format (GIF; or , see pronunciation) is a bitmap image format that was developed by a team at the online services provider CompuServe led by American computer scientist Steve Wilhite and released on 15 June 1987. ...

files in the photo area, per-contact customized sounds for various user actions, and clickable

URLs A Uniform Resource Locator (URL), colloquially termed as a web address, is a reference to a web resource that specifies its location on a computer network and a mechanism for retrieving it. A URL is a specific type of Uniform Resource Identi ...

in the status area. Microsoft began the official beta program for Windows Live Messenger 2009 on September 17, 2008, when it released a new beta officially known as Windows Live Messenger 2009 Beta (Milestone 3, Build 14.0.5027.908), which was made available to the general public as a free download. The ability to submit feedback, however, was restricted to select participants of the Microsoft Connect closed beta program. Notable changes in Milestone 3 include a new revamped and refined user interface to follow suit with the rest of the Windows Live "Wave 3" design, the ability to set a "Scene" by customizing the background image and color of the contact list, and the display of these scenes in conversation windows for improved contact identification and window management. Milestone 3 also brings a new "

Groups A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...

" feature that allows users to create a continuous group conversation between select contacts, newly redesigned status icons which now resemble small gems rather than the previous "Messenger Buddy" icons, a new default "Favorites" category in which you can place your favorite contacts for easy access to them, a new Photo Sharing utility that allows contacts to quickly and easily browse photos together, and a "What's New" section at the bottom of the contact list to outline recent contact updates. Display pictures have been moved over to the left side of conversation windows, and new colorful borders appear around display pictures to display the current status of that contact. Milestone 3 is the first version of Windows Live Messenger to use the standard window frame on

in accordance with the user experience guidelines. Several features were removed in version 9.0 however, such as the ability to use add-ins, the ability to transfer files when the recipient is signed in as offline, the "Be right back", "Out to lunch", and "In a call" status options, the ''Go to my space'' button, the ability to adjust webcam settings during a video call, the Send button, some games (depending on your localization) and integration with

Windows Contacts Windows Contacts is a contact manager that is included in Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, and Windows 11. It replaced but retains most of the functionality of Windows Address Book and worked with Windows Live Mail and the Vista ...

. Other features were replaced, such as ''Sharing Folders'' (replaced by integration with Windows Live SkyDrive) and background sharing (replaced by the "Scene" feature). On December 15, 2008, Windows Live Messenger 2009 RC (Build 14.0.8050.1202) was released together with the other Windows Live Wave 3 software applications, now renamed as

Windows Live Essentials Windows Essentials (formerly Windows Live Essentials and Windows Live Installer) is a discontinued suite of Microsoft freeware applications that includes email, instant messaging, photo sharing, blogging, and parental control software. ''Esse ...

. This version saw a removal of the custom sign-in sound feature however it is still possible to select a sound for other individuals, as well as changes to how the background image chosen is applied to the conversation windows. This build also included over 200 bug fixes including the "Custom Emoticon Bug" and saving of pictures when using the Photo sharing feature. On January 7, 2009, the same build was released as the final version of Windows Live Messenger 2009. The last QFE update for Wave 3 was released on May 12, 2010, and saw the removal of some features from Windows Live Messenger. Specifically, the ability to independently show only your own webcam or your contacts' webcam (one way webcam) and without an audio call is gone. It is only possible to start a video call which starts the webcams of both people communicating, and which also automatically starts audio calling. Also removed is the ability to import and save/export instant messaging contacts to and from .CTT files. On June 14, 2012, Microsoft has made the update from 2009 to 2011 mandatory for those using Windows Vista or 7. 2009 continues to be usable for those still running XP. This can be circumvented by running Windows Live Messenger in Windows XP compatibility mode, thus making it believe it is running on Windows XP. In late March 2010, a beta of Windows Live Essentials Wave 4 was leaked onto the internet and has since spread to various BitTorrent networks, which included a private beta build of Windows Live Messenger Wave 4. However, as the software was designed for private beta testing, non-beta testers cannot sign into this leaked build. The new software features a revamped interface which brings the "What's new" section of Windows Live to the new "social pane", similar to the way a social networking site presents updates. Among the new features are tabbed conversations, a redesign of the old emoticons, integration of

Bing Bing most often refers to: * Bing Crosby (1903–1977), American singer * Microsoft Bing, a web search engine Bing may also refer to: Food and drink * Bing (bread), a Chinese flatbread * Bing (soft drink), a UK brand * Bing cherry, a varie ...

results, built-in video message support, HD video chat, in-line commenting of social updates, a new social photo viewer that supports commenting (for Facebook and SkyDrive photos), badges support, synchronized status updates, availability by categories, as well as integration with Facebook chat. However, several features had also been removed from the previous version, such as the removal of display names, handwriting tool, one-way webcam requests and import/export of instant messaging contacts feature. The "Wave 4" release of Windows Live Essentials, which includes Messenger, also dropped compatibility with

and only runs on

Windows 7 Windows 7 is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was Software release life cycle#Release to manufacturing (RTM), released to manufacturing on July 22, 2009, and became generally available on October 22, ...

. The new Windows Live Messenger for the iOS became available on the

App Store An App Store (or app marketplace) is a type of digital distribution platform for computer software called applications, often in a mobile context. Apps provide a specific set of functions which, by definition, do not include the running of the c ...

on June 21, 2010, in addition to other mobile versions of Windows Live Messenger for

BlackBerry The blackberry is an edible fruit produced by many species in the genus ''Rubus'' in the family Rosaceae, hybrids among these species within the subgenus ''Rubus'', and hybrids between the subgenera ''Rubus'' and ''Idaeobatus''. The taxonomy ...

, and

Symbian Symbian is a discontinued mobile operating system (OS) and computing platform designed for smartphones. It was originally developed as a proprietary software OS for personal digital assistants in 1998 by the Symbian Ltd. consortium. Symbian OS ...

mobile platforms. On June 24, 2010, a public beta of Windows Live Messenger Wave 4 was released as part of the new Windows Live Essentials beta. A "beta refresh" of Windows Live Messenger Wave 4 was released on August 17, 2010, as part of an upgraded Windows Live Essentials beta. The final version of Windows Live Messenger 2011 (Wave 4) was released on September 30, 2010. On the same date, a version of Windows Live Messenger for

also became available. On August 7, 2012, Microsoft delivered a new version of the

Windows Essentials Windows Essentials (formerly Windows Live Essentials and Windows Live Installer) is a discontinued suite of Microsoft freeware applications that includes email, instant messaging, photo sharing, blogging, and parental control software. ''Essenti ...

2012 suite, which includes Windows Live Messenger 2012.

Discontinuation

On November 6, 2012, Microsoft announced that Messenger and

services would merge in the first quarter of 2013. According to Tony Bates (president of Skype Division at the time), Messenger users could sign into Skype using their

s, access their Messenger contacts and communicate as usual. On January 8, 2013, Microsoft emailed Messenger users and informed them that with the exception of

mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the China, People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming Island, Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territorie ...

, the Messenger service would stop working on March 15, 2013, and users would not be able to sign in. On February 15, 2013, ''

ZDNet ZDNET is a business technology news website owned and operated by Red Ventures. The brand was founded on April 1, 1991, as a general interest technology portal from Ziff Davis and evolved into an enterprise IT-focused online publication. H ...

'' wrote the discontinuation email was only sent to one percent of Messenger users, a test group. On the same day, Microsoft announced its plans to phase out Messenger: the process would start on April 8, 2013, with English users and would end on April 30, 2013; Messenger would remain available in mainland China. According to ''ZDNet'', this might only apply to the ability to sign in with Messenger client; Microsoft would keep its Messenger service running for another year. "Windows Live Messenger Upgrades to Skype", as they were referred to by Microsoft, started on April 8, 2013. This transition took place language by language. Brazil was the last country to be "upgraded", on April 30. Chinese Messenger users received an email from Microsoft in August 2014, containing an announcement that Messenger service in China would end on October 31, 2014; users were advised to migrate to Skype and receive free credits.

Features

In addition to its basic functionality and general capability as an instant messaging client, the latest version of Windows Live Messenger offered the following features:

Album Viewer

Windows Live Messenger's album viewer is based on

Windows Photo Gallery Windows Photo Gallery (formerly known as Windows Live Photo Gallery) is a discontinued image organizer, photo editor and photo sharing program. It is a part of Microsoft's Windows Essentials software suite. The product has been unavailable f ...

and provides users a photo viewing experience for photo albums shared via SkyDrive and Facebook. The album viewer is interactive and supports full screen and slideshow modes, as well as viewing and uploading comments on Facebook and SkyDrive albums. It also supports people tagging for SkyDrive. The album viewer closely resembles the

Microsoft Silverlight Microsoft Silverlight is a discontinued application framework designed for writing and running rich web applications, similar to Adobe's runtime, Adobe Flash. A plugin for Silverlight is still available for a very small number of browsers. ...

counterpart for web photo albums present on SkyDrive.

Appear offline to individuals or categories

Windows Live Messenger allows users to appear offline to particular individual contacts, as well as to an entire category within Windows Live Messenger, while appearing online to other contacts. This is a recent feature of Windows Live Messenger 2011, and is a departure from the previous versions of Windows Live Messenger, where blocking a contact would prevent the "blockee" from sending the user any messages to the "blocker". With the "appear offline to" configuration currently implemented, "hidden from" users can still send "offline messages" to the target.

Social networks integration

Users can connect services such as

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dust ...

, MySpace and

LinkedIn LinkedIn () is an American business and employment-oriented online service that operates via websites and mobile apps. Launched on May 5, 2003, the platform is primarily used for professional networking and career development, and allows job se ...

using

Windows Live Profile A Microsoft account or MSA (previously known as Microsoft Passport, .NET Passport, and Windows Live ID) is a single sign-on Microsoft user account for Microsoft customers to log in to Microsoft services (like Outlook.com), devices running on on ...

, and display their contact's Messenger social updates within the "Full view" of Windows Live Messenger. Users can also post status updates and photos directly to the connected services within Windows Live Messenger. Additionally, Messenger also imports all contacts from the connected services and integrates with Facebook Chat (via the

protocol) for instant messaging support with users on Facebook.

Offline messaging

One can send messages to contacts who are offline; they will receive the messages once they come online. Additionally, a user can start conversations even when their status is set to ''Appear Offline'' in Windows Live Messenger 2009 or before.

Games and applications

There are various games and applications available in Windows Live Messenger that can be accessed via the conversation window by clicking on the games icon, and challenging your friend or contact to a competition in a game, or inviting them to launch a shared external application.

Messenger Companion

Windows Live Messenger Companion was an add-in for

Windows Internet Explorer Internet Explorer (formerly Microsoft Internet Explorer and Windows Internet Explorer, commonly abbreviated IE or MSIE) is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft which was used in the Windows line of operating systems (in W ...

that detects when a user is on a website that one of their friends has shared content from and surfaces that update so that the user can instantly view what their friends have shared and leave a comment to the shared content on

. The service utilizes Windows Live ID and integrates tightly with Windows Live Messenger to obtain the user's contact list and their shared contents. The features of Windows Live Messenger Companion include: *Sharing links to web pages with the user's friends on Windows Live within the web browser *See links to web pages the user's friends have shared *Add comments to the links the user's friends have shared Windows Live Messenger Companion was made available as part of

2011. However, Microsoft discontinued Messenger Companion in its newer

2012 suite.

Protocol

Windows Live Messenger used the

Microsoft Notification Protocol Microsoft Notification Protocol (MSNP, also known as the Mobile Status Notification Protocol) is an instant messaging protocol developed by Microsoft for use by the Microsoft Messenger service and the instant messaging clients that connect to it, ...

(MSNP) over TCP (and optionally over

HTTP The Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is an application layer protocol in the Internet protocol suite model for distributed, collaborative, hypermedia information systems. HTTP is the foundation of data communication for the World Wide We ...

to deal with proxies) to connect to

—a service offered on

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as H ...

1863 of "messenger.hotmail.com." The protocol is not completely secret; Microsoft disclosed version 2 (MSNP2) to developers in 1999 in an

Internet Draft An Internet Draft (I-D) is a document published by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) containing preliminary technical specifications, results of networking-related research, or other technical information. Often, Internet Drafts are int ...

, but never released versions 8 or higher to the public. The Messenger service servers currently only accept protocol versions from 8 and higher, so the syntax of new commands sent from versions 8 and higher is only known by using

packet sniffer A packet analyzer, also known as packet sniffer, protocol analyzer, or network analyzer, is a computer program or computer hardware such as a packet capture appliance, that can intercept and log traffic that passes over a computer network or ...

s like

Wireshark Wireshark is a free and open-source packet analyzer. It is used for network troubleshooting, analysis, software and communications protocol development, and education. Originally named Ethereal, the project was renamed Wireshark in May 2006 du ...

. This has been an easy task because – in comparison to many other modern instant messaging protocols, such as

– the Microsoft Notification Protocol does not provide any

encryption In cryptography, encryption is the process of encoding information. This process converts the original representation of the information, known as plaintext, into an alternative form known as ciphertext. Ideally, only authorized parties can d ...

and everything can be captured easily using packet sniffers. The lack of proper encryption also makes wiretapping friend lists and personal conversations a trivial task, especially in unencrypted public

Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols, based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio waves ...

networks.

Content filtering

The content of users' messages is filtered on server side of the client. For example, the user can't send the links to

The Pirate Bay The Pirate Bay (sometimes abbreviated as TPB) is an online index of digital content of entertainment media and software. Founded in 2003 by Swedish think tank Piratbyrån, The Pirate Bay allows visitors to search, download, and contribute ...

's pages neither from the Windows Live Messenger, nor through other clients supporting the protocol. However, links to other

P2P networks Peer-to-peer (P2P) computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads between peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the network. They are said to form a peer-to-peer n ...

are allowed.

"i'm" initiative

The i'm initiative was a program Microsoft launched in March 2007, that connects the user with ten organizations dedicated to social causes through Windows Live Messenger, only for conversations sent or received in the USA. Every time someone had a conversation using i'm, Microsoft Corp. shared a portion of the program's advertising revenue with the organization of the user's choice. There was no set cap on the amount donated to each organization. The more ''i'm'' conversations the user had, the more money went to one of the ten causes. Each participating organization was guaranteed a minimum donation of $100,000 during the first year of the program. The i'm initiative worked with version 8.1 and above. In March 2010, the initiative concluded, having raised over 3 million dollars.

Platforms

Messenger Mobile (formerly named Windows Live Messenger Mobile) was the version of Messenger that was aimed to be used on mobile devices over a cellular data plan or Wi-Fi (if supported by the phone). There was also a

WAP WAP or Wap may refer to: Music * "WAP" (song), a 2020 song by Cardi B featuring Megan Thee Stallion Organizations * Weatherization Assistance Program, for US energy costs * Western Australia Party, a political party founded in 2016 * Western A ...

-compatible version that may be used on any mobile device, and also specific client versions designed for

, iOS,

and

Nokia Nokia Corporation (natively Nokia Oyj, referred to as Nokia) is a Finnish multinational telecommunications, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, established in 1865. Nokia's main headquarters are in Espoo, Finland, i ...

Series 60 The S60 Platform (formerly Series 60 User Interface) was a software platform for smartphones that runs on top of the Symbian operating system. It was created by Nokia based on the 'Pearl' user interface from Symbian Ltd. It was introduced at ...

devices.

Windows Mobile

A client version of Windows Live Messenger Mobile was a part of client application named "Windows Live for Windows Mobile" included with the

6 operating system. It was included on both Windows Mobile 6 smartphone edition (non-touch screen phones) and professional (touch screen phones). Among other features you could send voice-clips (max 10 seconds), pictures & emoticons.

Xbox

Windows Live Messenger support was included in the

spring 2007 dashboard update released on May 9, 2007. It was known as Xbox Live Messenger. Those using Windows Live Messenger were able to see the

Gamertags The Xbox network, formerly and still sometimes branded as Xbox Live, is an Internet, online multiplayer video game, multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft. It was first made available to the Xbox ...

of friends logged into

, including the games that they were playing. Xbox 360 users could chat in-game or while watching a movie. Although only text chat was supported, Microsoft suggested that voice and video chatting may come in a future update. Support for child accounts was added in December 2007. To coincide with the arrival of the integration of Windows Live Messenger with Xbox Live, Microsoft released a new Xbox 360 keyboard adapter called the Xbox 360 Messenger Kit for easier text input. The keyboard device attaches to the standard Xbox 360 controller through the headphone jack and features a QWERTY-style key layout with 47 backlit keys. However, any USB keyboard is also compatible with the Xbox 360. Microsoft also announced on June 14, 2010, that users on Xbox LIVE with the controller-free

Kinect Kinect is a line of motion sensing input devices produced by Microsoft and first released in 2010. The devices generally contain RGB cameras, and infrared projectors and detectors that map depth through either structured light or time of fli ...

could have real-time video conversations with Windows Live Messenger contacts. This feature was enabled at launch.

MSN TV (WebTV)

Starting in the summer of 2000, the Microsoft-owned web access product

(then known as WebTV) introduced a software upgrade for users of its internet terminals that added a basic messaging client among other features. The messaging client was designed to work with the

and was simply named MSN Messenger. The client for the original WebTV/MSN TV internet terminals supported basic presence, plain text messages (no graphical emoticons), and buddy lists, with the overall WebTV/MSN TV service hosting services for users to add, remove, or block Messenger contacts and manage their Messenger settings. Windows Live Messenger support was later added to the MSN TV 2, introducing a new UI to fit the rest of the MSN TV 2's interface and support for graphical emotions. It's believed these clients still worked up until the discontinuation of the MSN TV service in September 2013. Although WebTV was also available in Japan well before the Summer 2000 upgrade was introduced in the U.S., it does not appear that Japanese WebTV users ever received this Messenger feature.

Mac

Microsoft Messenger for Mac (previously MSN Messenger for Mac) was the official

instant messaging Instant messaging (IM) technology is a type of online chat allowing real-time text transmission over the Internet or another computer network. Messages are typically transmitted between two or more parties, when each user inputs text and tri ...

client for use with

, developed by the Macintosh Business Unit, a division of

. Its feature list was limited in comparison to that of its counterpart Windows Live Messenger; the client lacked a number of features that its Windows counterpart contained. The versions 3.x and later of Microsoft Messenger for Mac featured new Aqua graphics, whereas version 2.x and below have graphics similar to Windows Messenger 4.0. Versions 5.x used the

brushed metal A piece of brushed aluminium A collection of brushed stainless steel Breville small appliances A DeLorean featuring non-structural brushed stainless steel panels The Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri ">St._Louis,_Missouri.html" ;"title= ...

theme. * Version 2.5.1, update to version 2.5, which is a mandatory update to version 2.1 that is available for users running Mac OS 9.2.2. * Version 3.5 for Mac OS X revisions older than 10.2.8 * Version 4.0.1 for Mac OS X revisions 10.2.8 and newer * Version 5.1.1 for Mac OS X revisions 10.3 and newer * Version 6.0.3 for Mac OS X revisions 10.3.9 and newer * Version 7.0.0 for Mac OS X 10.4.9 or newer was released on April 29, 2008. * Version 7.0.1 for Mac OS X 10.4 or later includes minor bug fixes. * Version 7.0.2 for Mac OS X 10.4 or later: improves overall quality and conversations with Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 R2. * Version 8.0.0 beta for

Mac OS X 10.5 Mac OS X Leopard (version 10.5) is the sixth software versioning, major release of macOS, Apple Inc., Apple's desktop and server operating system for Macintosh computers. Leopard was released on October 26, 2007 as the successor of Mac OS X Tig ...

or later, for Intel Macs only: Official Beta released on March, 24th 2010. Adds A/V conferencing between Mac OS X users and Windows Live Messenger 2009 users. *Version 8.0.0 for Mac OS X 10.5 or later, for Intel Macs only: Released with

Microsoft Office 2011 for Mac Microsoft Office for Mac 2011 is a version of the Microsoft Office productivity suite for macOS. It is the successor to Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac and is comparable to Office 2010 for Windows. Office 2011 was followed by Microsoft Office 201 ...

in October 2010 and bears a visual similarity to previous Windows counterparts. It features somewhat more stable functional voice and video calls. With the release of Microsoft Messenger for Mac 7.0, Microsoft has discontinued the client's support for older versions of their Corporate messaging systems (such as

Live Communications Server 2005 {{no footnotes, date=June 2018 Live Communications Server 2005 (LCS 2005), codenamed Vienna, is the second version of a SIP based instant messaging and presence server after Live Communications Server 2003. LCS 2005 was first released in 2005, a ...

). The latest version to support these older systems is Version 6.0.3, which is still available for download on the Microsoft website. Webcam and audio support was delayed due to Windows Live Messenger's webcam and audio engine being reworked, which meant that the Mac version had to wait until this was complete in order for both platform releases to function correctly.

iOS

The Windows Live Messenger for iOS client supported receiving of instant messaging notifications even when the application closed, and allowed Multiple Points of Presence (MPOP) such that a user can be signed into multiple locations at the same time. Photos and albums could also be uploaded from the mobile devices onto

Windows Live Photos Microsoft OneDrive (formerly SkyDrive) is a file hosting service operated by Microsoft. First launched in August 2007, it enables registered users to share and synchronize their files. OneDrive also works as the storage backend of the web vers ...

, based on SkyDrive, and the application allowed simple image editing capabilities and people tagging within the photos. The application also supported the "Messenger social" feed on

, allowing users to view and comment on the social updates and activities of their contacts on Windows Live, as well as those on Facebook, MySpace and

once these social networks had been connected to Windows Live as a "Service".

Java ME

Nokia Series 40

The Windows Live Messenger Mobile client came as a

mobile application pre-loaded on devices such as Nokia 7610, Nokia 7510, Nokia 7210, Nokia 6700c, Nokia 6600s, Nokia 6303c, Nokia 6260s, Nokia 5220, Nokia 5130XM, Nokia 3720c, Nokia 3710f, Nokia, 3600s, Nokia 2730c, Nokia 2700c, Nokia 5530, Nokia 6303c and Nokia X3.

Sony Ericsson

A version of the Windows Live Messenger Mobile client was also pre-loaded on most Sony Ericsson mobile devices as a

application.

Symbian

A client for Windows Live Messenger was developed by Microsoft for the Symbian S60 Platform commonly used on mobile phones such as

smartphones A smartphone is a portable computer device that combines mobile telephone and computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, whic ...

and released on August 23, 2007, to selected markets. In May 2009, the client was made available on the

Ovi Store Ovi by Nokia ( fi, ovi, translation=door) was the brand for Nokia's Internet services. The Ovi services could be used from a mobile device, computer (through Ovi Suite) or via the web. Nokia focused on five key service areas: Games, Maps, Media, ...

. This version of Windows Live Messenger included many of the features of the Windows Live Messenger client, including grouped contacts, voice clips (max 10 seconds), image and file sending; as well as features unique to S60 such as tabbed chat windows and integration with contact list and other features of the S60 platform. When the trial expires the cost to users of Messenger for S60 is £1.50/$2.94 for 30 calendar days of use. As of February 2009, Microsoft stopped charging for Windows Live Mobile and the service is now offered for free.

Interoperability

On October 13, 2005,

Yahoo! Yahoo! (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake company Yahoo Inc., which is 90% owned by investment funds managed by Apollo Global Mana ...

and Microsoft announced plans to add interoperability between their messenger services. The announcement came after years of third-party interoperability success (most notably,

PowWow A powwow (also pow wow or pow-wow) is a gathering with dances held by many Native American and First Nations communities. Powwows today allow Indigenous people to socialize, dance, sing, and honor their cultures. Powwows may be private or p ...

by Tribal Voice, Trillian,

Pidgin A pidgin , or pidgin language, is a grammatically simplified means of communication that develops between two or more groups of people that do not have a language in common: typically, its vocabulary and grammar are limited and often drawn from s ...

) and criticisms from Tribal Voice and

iCast ''The CBS News iCast'' was a daily news audio podcast A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. For example, an episodic series of digital audio or video files that a user can download to a ...

that the major real time communications services were locking their networks. Yahoo! and Windows Live Messenger became interoperable on July 12, 2006. For six years, Yahoo! Messenger and Windows Live Messenger users in possession of up-to-date software could communicate across the two networks.

Instant messaging Instant messaging (IM) technology is a type of online chat allowing real-time text transmission over the Internet or another computer network. Messages are typically transmitted between two or more parties, when each user inputs text and tri ...

as well as transmission of

emoticon An emoticon (, , rarely , ), short for "emotion icon", also known simply as an emote, is a pictorial representation of a facial expression using characters—usually punctuation marks, numbers, and letters—to express a person's feelings, ...

nudge Nudge or Nudging may refer to: Arts * Nudge (band), an American electronic rock band * Nudge, a character from the Maximum Ride series by James Patterson * "Nudge Nudge", a sketch from the third ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' * Gerald "Nudge" N ...

s, offline messages,

presence information In computer and telecommunications networks, presence information is a status indicator that conveys ability and willingness of a potential communication partner—for example a user—to communicate. A user's client provides presence information ...

and personal status messages were supported. On December 14, 2012, the interoperability ended.MSN Messenger interoperability discontinuing on December 14
. Yahoo.com. Retrieved on December 17, 2012. Interoperability with Facebook Chat was added on September 30, 2010, with the launch of Windows Live Messenger 2011.

References

{{Windows Live, state=uncollapsed 1999 software Adware MSN Teleconferencing Videotelephony VoIP software Windows instant messaging clients

Messenger ''MESSENGER'' was a NASA robotic space probe that orbited the planet Mercury between 2011 and 2015, studying Mercury's chemical composition, geology, and magnetic field. The name is a backronym for "Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geochem ...

Windows-only freeware Symbian software Yahoo! instant messaging clients Products and services discontinued in 2013 Discontinued Microsoft software Defunct instant messaging clients