In case you don’t know, Microsoft has entered the instant messaging market, and in order to catch up with the entrenched players, they’re offering interoperability with existing products. AOL is the entrenched player, they’re pissed off, and they’re blocking Microsoft. Right now, Microsoft has successfully made their product, MSN Messenger Service, communicate with AOL Instant Messenger (ICQ support is forthcoming). Of course, the problem is this whole market is filled with slimy companies. AOL is desperately trying to hang on to the market share that they have, and Microsoft is just playing the interoperability game long enough to capture enough of the market to kill everyone else. A pox on both their houses, I say.