One Month Later, ICQ 5 Announced

America Online subsidiary ICQ has formally announced ICQ 5 more than one month after the software was made available for download.

ICQ 5 fastens advanced communications capabilities including a walkie-talkie like Voice over IP (VoIP) function called Push2Talk and improved video conferencing to the client. Other improvements are added customization and expanded core features.

Push2Talk's VoIP technology enables buddies to converse via the Web as they would with a two-way radio. Push2Talk is a prominent feature: Once a session is invoked, the feature's paging dialog remains visible on the desktop even while the full ICQ client is minimized.

New customization options and core improvements bring dual screen support, and full screen games to ICQ. Breaking from tradition, users now have the option to change a classic ICQ behavior by configuring the Enter key to send messages.

Version 5.0 is built out of ICQ's open source Xtras platform architecture, which slims down the client by transforming "bells and whistles" into Web services targeted toward youth audiences.

The client has been available on the Web since early February. An AOL spokesperson explained the delayed launch announcement by saying that the company was considering promotional ideas for international markets. ICQ maintains sizeable market share internationally, while AIM dominates instant messaging in the United States.

ICQ 5 is available for download via FileForum.