There was life before instant messaging, but I don't quite remember it. For those whose work environment allows them the luxury of an Internet connection without firewalls, it would hardly be surprising to find a taskbar icon indicating their online status on the messenger service of their choice. I myself am one of those addicts. I begin the day by logging in. An instant indication of all my friends who are online, stock quotes, a sports watch if I require it, access to innumerable chat rooms and the piece de resistance, an instant notification whenever I receive mail.
Features come and features go.
As the companies slug it out to offer greater enhancements to their product, they often commit too much. They revoke that service because it costs them more than it generates. No offense taken. Most continue to patronize their messenger. After all, there still is voice communication and several other functionalities.