ICQ

Management

Eliav Moshe is the managing director of ICQ

Performance Indicators

ICQ revenue in the II quarter 2010 made $8.1 million (for $3.1 million less, than the previous year), and the indicator of OIBDA was reduced by $1.5 million to $5 million, follows from the report of AOL. Earlier AOL did not open ICQ indicators, and now made it that analysts could rebuild models of assessment of AOL without this asset, the representative of AOL Trisha Primrose explained to Vedomosti.

ICQ earns from sale of advertizing and its income hardly strongly changes of a quarter by a quarter, the analyst of Troika Dialog Anna Lepetukhina believes. Means, roughly ICQ revenue for 2009 can be stated in $40 million. OIBDA indicator for 2009 at ICQ was about $20 million, Primrose says. She does not open annual revenues of service.

If to proceed from annual revenues of ICQ in $40 million, then its profitability according to OIBDA could make 50% last year, and in the II quarter 2010 reached the whole 61.7%. It is a lot of even for the Internet company, Lepetukhina says. At the Chinese Baidu it is 43%, Google has 35%. But Google shares income with partners, and Baidu spends for development much, Lepetukhina assumes. From the Russian companies Mail.ru (in 2008 — 60%) was the leader in profitability long, but after consolidation with Astrum the indicator was reduced to 43.9%. ICQ, being in the structure of AOL, saved on infrastructure and, perhaps, to advertizing, Lepetukhina assumes.

Decline in income of ICQ in the II quarter 2010 can be connected with falling of its popularity. According to Comscore, the number of users of ICQ in the world in a year since June, 2009 decreased by 14.4% up to 30.3 million people, in Russia — for 7.8% up to 7.5 million. Decrease in popularity of messengers — a world trend, the senior manager on development of ComScore in Europe Osnat Zaretski says: the audience is taken away by social networks.

Basic income of ICQ is brought by banners and contextual advertizing in search results. It is known that Rambler revenue from advertizing in ICQ made about $6 million in 2008, and in 2009 there was "a similar result", told a source, close to it.

Audience

2009

According to the company, the world monthly audience of ICQ in June, 2009 made 47.3 million users. Despite falling of world audience of the messenger, number of its Russian users remained rather stable from 2009 to 2011, and during the period from June, 2010 to June, 2011 even increased from 15.1 million to 15.6 million users, having practically won back falling for previous year^[1].

2010

ICQ is available in 16 languages and has more than 32 million unique visitors a month (data of comScore Media Metrix for February, 2010) Nearly 80 percent of users of ICQ are made by young people aged from 13 up to 29 years which are connected to service on average for more than 5 hours a day. ICQ takes the leading positions in the markets of Russia, Germany, the Czech Republic and Israel.

In the USA ICQ considerably is inferior in popularity to the competitors from Microsoft, Yahoo, Google and Skype and Windows Messenger, the having more than 500 million and more than 300 million users, respectively. AOL owns also one more service of instant messages - AIM which in the USA enjoys bigger popularity, than ICQ, and is among leaders in this market.

The world's largest network of message exchange Tencent QQ which totals more than 1 billion users belongs to the Chinese company.

For November 13, 2010 the number of the users connected to ICQ by means of the PC at least 1 time for the last 30 days made 47.9 million people. Users as "native" ICQ program (14.7 million people), and alternative clients (33.1 million) enter this quantity. Adherents of "native" ICQ make minority: their 44% of the total number of users of service. In November, 2009 the number of its nonunique users on the PC made 69.95 million. Thus, in a year the number of connections to ICQ fell almost to a third (31.5%). But the remained users became more active (for the same time the number of the messages transferred according to "ICQ" dropped only by 15%), and the number of the users leaving in "ICQ" from different mobile devices for the same year grew up.

2012

According to the closing statement of the company for 2012, the world monthly audience of ICQ decreased from December, 2011 to December, 2012 by 41% — up to 15.9 million people, audience in the Russian Federation — for 37.6%, up to 9.8 million people.

2013

The world monthly audience of the ICQ Internet messenger (Mail.Ru Group belongs) as of December, 2013 made 11 million users, the Russian audience — 6.7 million people, follows from the financial statement of Mail.Ru company.

For comparison, a year ago in December, 2012 the world monthly audience of ICQ totaled 15.9 million people, i.e. in a year it decreased by 30.9%. The audience of the messenger in Russia as of December, 2012 made 9.8 million users, thus, its reduction for the last year was 31.7%.

ICQ in Russia

2010

In April, 2010 the managing director of ICQ Eliav Moshe told that the audience of ICQ in Russia makes about 18.5 million a month. He recognized that it is users of the ICQ protocol and how many from them uses the original ICQ messenger, did not tell. According to ICQ (September, 2010), 40% of its Russian audience are users of the programs which are officially not supported by the company (QIP, Miranda, Adium, Pidgin and dr).

According to the estimates of Comscore (2010), using the ICQ messenger 5.9 million Russian users communicate. Approximately the same audience at the QIP messenger (uses the ICQ protocol). There are also other messengers supporting the ICQ protocol — Miranda, Adium. ICQ fights against them from time to time, changing settings of the protocol. After purchase of ICQ DST can suggest RBC (the co-owner of Qip) and other companies to broadcast the advertizing ICQ in the messengers under the threat of shutdown of the protocol, the co-owner of Nigma.ru Victor Lavrenko assumes. New owners have the right to decide how to arrive with the asset, but in the world any large company (Microsoft, Tencent) did not disconnect alternative messengers — it only promotes transition of users to competitors, the CEO of Mediamir (enters into RBC) Mikhail Gurevich reminds.

2015

"The agent of Mail.Ru" and ICQ exist for all platforms, at the same time according to the statistics TNS for the large cities Agent of Mail.Ru is more popular on mobile, than ICQ. In April, 2015 both Mail.ru Group messengers considerably were inferior to communication products of the let-in Microsoft (Skype), Facebook (WhatsApp), Google and Viber. Even the audience of Agent of Mail.Ru and ICQ put together does not allow holding to enter into the three of the most important messengers on mobile platforms, it is about lag of MRG many times.

Cooperation with Rambler

In 2005 Rambler signed the agreement with ICQ and since then more than 6 million users were connected to its version of the messenger. The Rambler ICQ messenger differs from the original version of ICQ in the fact that services of the Russian company — in particular, a search line are built in it.

After transition of ICQ under control of DST in April, 2010 in Rambler said that will continue to cooperate anyway: the belonging Rambler has Index20 agencies the exclusive sales contract of advertizing in ICQ till 2012.

Cooperation with Yandex

In June, 2009 "Yandex" agreed with ICQ company about promotion of its messenger in Russia. When downloading the Russian version of the messenger from the website icq.com users were offered to set a search line and the toolbar of "Yandex". "Yandex" distributed ICQ and on the yandex.ru pages. At the same time ICQ gained all income from media advertizing, and "Yandex" — from context (placed in search results, started from ICQ).

In August, 2009 the co-branded version of ICQ ("Yandex ICQ") with the built-in search from "Yandex" appeared. Even earlier "Yandex" released an Internet pager "Ya. Online" based on Jabber technology. Based on this technology release pagers and other Internet companies, for example, Google and Livejournal, at the same time users of different Jabber-products can exchange with each other to messages. Development of the project "Ya. Online" continues, but how many at the program of users, in "Yandex" do not speak. Advertizing in "Yandex ICQ" was sold by Index20 agency entering into Rambler Media Group.

After transition of ICQ under control of DST in April, 2010 "Yandex" was going to continue partnership if the new owner does not solve differently. Nevertheless on September 16, 2010, the term of the contract signed between "Yandex" and ICQ concerning work of the joint version of an Internet pager ended. The contract will not be prolonged. The representative of "Yandex" Ochir Mandzhikov said that the company was satisfied with cooperation conditions. It will be offered to users of a product to upgrade to the original version of ICQ. Audience "Yandex is ICQ" and revenue which to "Yandex" was generated by this product, in the company do not open. According to the source, familiar with a situation, the contract was not prolonged at the initiative of ICQ. Perhaps, it is connected with the fact that under control DST Mail.ru has own product - "Mail.ru-Agent" with audience 16 million unique users monthly.

History

2021: The number of loadings of ICQ grew after plans of WhatsApp to exchange data with Facebook

At the end of January, 2021 there was a surge in activity of users of ICQ after the administration of WhatsApp announced change of policy of service.

At the beginning of 2021 people began a thicket to download ICQ, and in some countries growth was repeated. So, in Hong Kong as writes the The Wall Street Journal edition with reference to data of Sensor Tower analytical company, the number of loadings of the messenger belonging to Mail.ru Group grew by 35 times — from 200 to 7000 in a week from January 5 to January 12.

Loadings of ICQ increased after it became known of plans of WhatsApp to exchange data with Facebook

In ICQ confirmed to the edition sharp jump of interest in service in Hong Kong and reported that the number of loadings in a week in January exceeded an indicator for all fourth quarter 2020. At the same time in the company did not begin to open the general audience of the messenger and only called the countries where it is demanded most of all: Russia, Nigeria and Germany.

The users of WhatsApp worldwide concerned by the forthcoming change of policy of service for confidentiality of data began to pass in large quantities to other applications for message exchange, including to Telegram, Signal and ICQ. On January 8 WhatsApp included in the user agreement point according to which personal data of users of service are made available to all family of applications from Facebook (WhatsApp is a part of Facebook). Users were offered to confirm the new agreement till February 8, however afterwards the administration of service postponed introduction of new rules for three months.

Users from Hong Kong also do not like "attempts of Facebook to toady to China", WSJ writes. The representative of ICQ said to the newspaper that messages of users "are never transferred to anybody", except as by a court decision.

One more reason for the growing popularity the ICQ edition calls nostalgia of users who communicated according to this messenger, studying at school.^[2]

2015: Mail.ru Group called priority the ICQ brand, but on the technical platform of Agent of Mail.Ru

ICQ became the priority Mail.ru Group messenger,^[3] reported Vedomosti] the head of strategic PR-projects of holding Madina Tayupova^[4]. It is about "consolidation" of the ICQ brand with Agent of Mail.Ru — one more messenger in the property of holding. "Agent" will continue work and forced transfer of its users in ICQ will not be yet, however technology process of consolidation goes long ago, Tayupova explained.

In January, 2015 Mail.ru Group closed^[5]. Igor Ermakov, the head of department of Instant Messaging in Mail.ru Group holding explained that myChat was a polygon for researches and his ideas are transferred to new generation of ICQ. myChat appeared in November, 2013 in a packet of My.com and intended to the western, but not the Russian market though it could be used also for communication, including, with ICQ subscribers. In April 2014 MRG considered the benefit existence of several programs of an identical purpose: "myChat and ICQ are two separate products which will develop further, adopt each other the most successful solutions".

2011

In April, 2011 Mail.Ru Group published the new license agreement about use of the ICQ protocol.

The purpose of the new license agreement is an observance of interests and formation of safe and convenient conditions for communication of users and also building of open and constructive dialogue with all categories of ICQ clients, representatives of Mail.Ru Group said. For non-commercial products work with the ICQ protocol is not connected with any restrictions, and everything that it is required – to follow simple rules of use of the protocol from their authors, namely not to be engaged in bulk mailing of undesirable messages, not to take information from directories and the ICQ databases and not to mislead by any methods users.

"Legalization of all unofficial ICQ clients existing today – one of the major tasks for Mail.Ru Group at the current stage of development of a product. Announcing the new license agreement, we want to confirm officially once again readiness for negotiations and search of acceptable options of cooperation with other players of the market. Our common goal – creation of safe and convenient conditions of communication for users. Quite recently the solution on support of the ICQ protocol in Nimbuzz was officially announced. Products, cooperation with which we hope to announce in the nearest future, – open-source of the program Adium, Pidgin, R&Q", - Alexander Gorny, chapter of ICQ in Russia told.

In May, 2011 testing of the "native" client, the first in the history of ICQ, began for OS Linux. Thereby "ICQ" began expansion on one of the last not covered operating systems. Beta testing of ICQ for Linux which became known on May 24, 2011 started in not the quite open mode. The page of the beta is in open access, however the most part of day on May 24 the button link by which it is possible to download the ICQ client, did not work. The representative of Mail.ru, the current owner, confirmed that testing it will be widely announced in the next few days.

The client software program ICQ for Linux represents not the independent application. For work it requires Adobe the AIR environment set in a system (which, in turn, requires the set Adobe Flash). Having used Adobe of AIR, developers of "ICQ" from Mail.ru strongly facilitated to themselves work, however imposed serious restrictions for the hardware of the computer on which the client of ICQ will be started. For start AIR Adobe on the website specifies processor Intel Pentium 4 and 1 GB of RAM as the minimum requirements.

It is interesting that at such requirements "ICQ under Linux" will be deprived of a part of the functionality available in the version to Windows. In particular, Linux version will not support audio-and video calls to ICQ networks. The ICQ project manager in Mail.ru Alexander Gorny reported to CNews that before being engaged in further development of the program for Linux, in service would like to receive a feedback from users about the existing beta.

2010: Transition of control to DST

In December, 2009 AOL separated from Time Warner and began to sell non-core assets. Among them it was ICQ which AOL estimated at $300 million.

Binding offers about purchase of the ICQ online messenger by April, 2010 were submitted by the Russian Digital Sky Technologies (DST), ProfMedia, the Chinese Tencent and and the southern African Naspers. AOL invited to participate in the tender for ICQ some more Russian companies — mobile operators and "Yandex", but they refused, told Vedomosti the sources close to organizers of the transaction and to these companies. When the tender results are summed up, interlocutors of Vedomosti do not know.

ProfMedia offered about $120 million for ICQ, one of applicants tells. The offer of DST is higher, he claims. Earlier the source of The Wall Street Journal close to participants of the potential transaction said that DST can offer $200-250 million for the company.

Clients of ICQ could be useful to Mail.ru and Rambler under control of DST and ProfMedia respectively, told sources, close to them. Mail.ru has a similar Agent@mail.ru project with monthly audience about 12 million users, and ICQ — her main competitor in Russia. Rambler became the partner of ICQ in 2005, having released the joint Russified version of the messenger — Rambler ICQ has 5 million users now. Similar partnership at ICQ with "Yandex" (4 million people). A similar situation at Tencent: it supports one of the messengers, most popular in China — QQ.

As a result of April 28, 2010 by ICQ it was sold to the Russian DST for 187.5 mln. dollars So DST estimated ICQ approximately at nine indicators of OIBDA (see activity indicators in 2 sq. 2010 above). It is the average multiplicator for the media companies, usually they bargain on 10 EBITDA, Lepetukhina says.

1996-1998

In November, 1996 ICQ was published. Later only half a year – in May of the 1997th – the Tel Aviv partners who by then founded Mirabilis company announced that the audience of users of their messenger reached one million. In 1998 by ICQ it was sold to the American provider America Online for $287 million Mirabilis turned into ICQ Inc. also became a part of AOL. After that service slowed down the development.

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Notes