More users getting the instant message

       Thailand is the world's seventh-ranked user of Windows Live Messenger, which points to high revenue potential for the mobile version once 3G is fully rolled out.
       The ranking relates to the number of instant messages sent per month, per user, with Thais sending an average of 839 messages each month through Windows Live Messenger, said Craig LawSmith, Southeast Asia Marketing Director,Online Service Group at Microsoft.
       The six countries ahead of Thailand are Mexico, where users send an average of 978 messages per month, followed by Brazil with 963 messages, Taiwan (927),Spain (903), Netherlands (867) and Italy (846).
       Microsoft was quick to localise Windows Live Messenger in Thailand,offering geographically relevant content on top of continuing worldwide innovations such as the nudge - introduced with MSN Messenger 7.0 in 2005- enabling users to get the attention of, and interact with, their favourite chat partners.
       Law-Smith noted that Windows Live Messenger already has 5.3 million subscribers, and this figure is growing at a rate of 25 percent year-on-year.
       "As of May, on average, each Windows Live user spends 533 minutes per month using the programme. This shows a high user engagement.
       "High-engagement users with mass volume will help us monetise by offering a better return on investment foradvertisers.
       Furthermore, once 3G is up and running in Thailand, an increase in people using Windows Live Messenger on there mobiles is expected, bringing yet more revenue from advertising and network operators.
       Competition among operators and handset manufacturers should lower prices for consumers, which in turn will help make Messenger more affordable and thus accessible.
       "In Jakarta, more and more people are using Messenger on their mobiles as a cheaper alternative to the normal short message service [SMS]," said LawSmith.
       He continued that the growth of social networking sites - which help people to connect and share photos, videos,music, documents, links and so on has increased the amount of channels and accounts requiring login, so integration between instant messaging and social networking is attractive.
       Already Windows Live Messenger has more than 20 web partners, including Facebook, Twitter, Digg, Flickr, and others. Data shows that Facebook notifications account for 3 percent of all Hotmail messages.
       "To survive in this business, we have to add value for users and integrate with other web partners to simplify connections for customers," said Law-Smith.
       "This goes beyond instant messaging or emailing or social networking; it's about making everything as simple as possible for consumers.
       "Even in the economic crisis, the users also use IM more to connect with their friends and family or for finding jobs, so it show how IM plays an important role for communication tools."