Instant Messaging Use Rising Fast

August 15th, 2006: Figures from the USA claim that Instant Messaging is the fastest-growing communications system in history. Ye, most IT managers claim it is not used in their workplace.

Last month the American Management Association and The ePolicy Institute released a survey that showed 35% of employees use IM at work, even though only 31% of organisations had instant messaging policies. The survey also showed that 50% of IM workplace users were downloading free IM tools from the Internet, a dangerous practice that 26% of employers aren't even aware of.

These figures make IM the fastest-growing communication system ever, and one that could easily displace email as the smoking gun in litigation and e-discovery in the future.

Just like all forms of electronic data, IM text should be captured, indexed and archived, ready to be searched and retrieved when needed for business or legal reasons. The reality is that most organisations don't archive IMs at all.

Meanwhile, conscientious corporations that want to index and archive IMs have a new problem: The language used bears little resemblance to standard English. How do you index BRB (Be Right Back), TTYS (Talk To You Soon), GA (Go Ahead), OIC, (Oh, I see) and WDYS (What Did You Say)?

AXS-One, which provides records compliance management services to a broad range of multinationals, has developed innovative responses. That includes incorporating technologies from FaceTime Communications, which support PIM (Personal Information Management), Enterprise IM applications as well as professional community networks and web conference applications. In effect, these services translate IM-speak into language that better lends itself to the more mundane work of indexing and archiving.

The company's David Thompson says, "If you ask managers if IM is available, they say, 'We don't allow it'. They may not allow it, but how many people are using it?"

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