Internet service provider MWEB says it has had more than 85 000 users on its QQ instant messaging service since it was quietly relaunched three months ago.
The ISP also says about nine million messages were sent between subscribers during May.
QQ was originally released in SA in 1999, but it received a lukewarm reception due to the prevalence of SMS. Naspers, MWEB`s holding company, then introduced it in China and Thailand in 2000, where it attracted about 150 million users.
The latest version reintroduced to SA includes voice-over-Internet protocol (VOIP) and video compression technologies. Swedish software house Global IP Sound, which developed the backbone for the well-known Skype IP telephone service, developed these services.
Russell Dreisenstock, GM of MWEB Home, says that since the launch of the new VOIP version of QQ in mid-February, an average of 250 000 instant messages were sent per day by over 20 000 active users, a figure far exceeding the initial projected take-up.
"QQ is light on PC resources but packed with great features. QQ has been enhanced to include multi-party chats, voice conversations over the Internet, SMS services and video chats," he says.
Driesenstock says instant messaging is more interactive than email, more private than a phone call because no one can listen in, and apart from normal Internet connectivity costs, it is free.
Tim Gregory, MWEB Home manager for new products, says QQ is given away free so that the company`s subscribers can encourage their counterparts to download it. "We have to give away both ends," he says.
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