NEW YORK - AOL Time Warner Inc.'s America Online unit will sell businesses a more-secure version of its instant-messaging software as the largest Internet company tries to find more corporate customers.
America Online plans to charge companies for each employee who uses an "enterprise" edition of the service to trade quick, conversational messages, Senior Vice President Bruce Stewart said in an interview yesterday. He declined to discuss prices. The consumer version, used by 180 million subscribers, remains free.
The company, struggling with declining advertising sales and slowing subscription growth, wants more revenue from its instant-messenger users, analysts said. America Online ranks first with consumers, though it has mostly avoided the business market. Focusing on that area puts it in more competition with Microsoft Corp., the No. 2 Web provider, analysts said.
"Anything done here will be competed with by Microsoft almost instantly," said Harold Vogel, a media analyst who is chief executive of Vogel Capital Inc. and owns no AOL Time Warner shares. "Microsoft isn't asleep at the switch."
Instant messages appear immediately on a user's screen, creating a rapid exchange that requires fewer keystrokes than e-mail. The company's business version provides more options and security, including keeping internal communications within a company, Stewart said.
About 42.5 million people nationwide used instant messaging in the workplace in August, according to research company ComScore Networks Inc. Most used services from America Online, Microsoft's MSN Network or Yahoo! Inc.
America Online's consumer instant-messaging software is used by at least one person in 59 percent of all U.S. companies, Stewart said.
Last month, Yahoo said it would start selling a version of its consumer instant-messaging service for businesses. Yahoo owns the third-most-used Internet instant-messaging service in the United States. The new service offers security features including encryption, Yahoo said.
America Online said it is developing an encryption feature to be introduced next year. America Online is working on the new security feature with VeriSign Inc., which oversees Web site addresses for companies and network providers.