Userplane, which is a instant messaging and chat software company, has been taken over by AOL. The deal was said to be completed last week, but the financial terms were not disclosed.
Userplane is associated with more than a 100,000 Web sites and online communities by virtue of licensing its software to them. MySpace.com, Date.com, Marvel Comics and American Honda Motor Co. are some of the more famous names that have Userplane's technology licensed on their sites. "Userplane will expand and extend the reach and relevance of the AOL instant-messaging franchise," said a statement issued by Ted Leonsis, AOL Audience Business president.
Los Angeles-based Userplane will now operate as a "wholly owned subsidiary" of AOL. The chat services were launched in 2001 and have gained popularity due to the ease of integration into many web services.
The acquisition by AOL marks another step for the company, which is looking to aggressively court advertisers. Last month it had announced a public beta of AIM Pro service for businesses.
