The commission's staff has recommended that AOL be required to make its system work with at least one other provider, but the requirement would apply only to advanced instant messaging services offered over Time Warner's cable lines. How the agency defines advanced services is unclear. They could refer to features beyond text messaging, such as video teleconferencing, the sharing of files or messaging over interactive television. Today, consumers more commonly take advantage of the garden variety functions. Unlike e-mail, it's instantaneous and gets the recipient's attention right away.
People can communicate with international friends without the hefty phone bills.
And the service has taken hold with those who have hearing or speech disabilities. Unlike the telephone, people can discreetly interact with others or decide not to. On the telephone, you can't see when somebody is near the phone. They continue to lobby the FCC, hoping to see the conditions broadened before the agency issues its final decision. It's absolutely critical that Internet uses have real choice among competing platforms.