After connecting millions of users for over 20 years, Yahoo has announced that its messaging service will be retired on 17 July 2018. Starting from day onwards, users will not be able to access or sign to it which used to be one of the biggest such service in the world.
There was no official reason specified on the shuttering of the service. That being said, we wouldn’t discount the emergence of so many instant messaging services that are more modern and direct such as WhatsApp and Telegram as one of the big factors behind the decision.
Nevertheless, Yahoo did include this statement in the FAQ regarding the closure of Yahoo Messenger:
“We know we have many loyal fans who have used Yahoo Messenger since its beginning as one of the first chat apps of its kind. As the communications landscape continues to change over, we’re focusing on building and introducing new, exciting communications tools that better fit consumer needs.”
At the same time, the company also stated that users can download their chat history to their PC or mobile service for the next 6 months from its data request located here. Yahoo also recommends users looking for an alternative to Yahoo Messenger to try out Yahoo Squirrel which is an invite-only chat platform that is currently in beta stage.
(Source: Yahoo)
