Instant messaging is just the beginning.
As the bulk of business and personal computing moves even further onto the Internet, identifying the next key technological battlefront is more important than ever for America Online, Microsoft, and a cast of smaller hopefuls seeking to determine what course the Web takes. The war for the Web won't be decided by a single battle, but through a series of skirmishes on key fronts. The winner will in all likelihood control what the general public sees and does on the Web. Experts agree that, like HTML and HTTP before it, messaging standards have the potential to be hugely important and could pave the way for an entire array of new services. But perhaps more than anything else, the instant messaging controversy points out just how unpredictable the fight for control of Internet technologies will be.