Benefits of Your Own XMPP Server

Instant messaging is a fast and inexpensive method of communication that has been part of the Internet since the early days. While most are familiar with proprietary instant messaging protocols like AOL Instant Messenger and Yahoo! Messenger, some may not be familiar with XMPP, even if they use it. It powers Google Talk and Facebook Chat, and it is free and open source.

Because XMPP is an open standard, you can implement on your server and have your own instant messaging system. This does not mean you will be able to compete with AOL, Google, or Yahoo. What it does mean, however, is that your organization can create its own instant messaging platform for internal communication.

There are more than a dozen server software applications that can run the XMPP standard protocol. Some of them are paid solutions, while others are free and can be implemented with little cost. XMPP supports encrypted transmissions so your communications will remain private, and it also supports voice and other data streams to allow for a fully connected communication experience. XMPP protocols are defined by the XMPP Standards Foundations.