Live Messenger's i'm Initiative

Microsoft Brings Social Causes Directly to the User

Jul 25, 2007 Andi Bryant

Messenger's unique program offers nine non-profit humanitarian organizations to receive advertisement revenues. Which effort receives the revenue is up to you.

Windows Live Messenger, a Microsoft program enabling real time communication through a virtual platform, has partnered with nine of the world's most well known and respected social issue organizations in one program entitled the i'm Initiative. i'm stands for 'I'm Making a Difference', which took its first steps in March, 2007.

Under this program, users of Windows Live Messenger are afforded an opportunity to choose from nine different humanitarian organizations that focus on some of the most critical social issues that stand in the forefront of concern today. Under this initiative, users choose one of the causes by simply typing a corresponding code for the humanitarian effort directly into the Live Messenger program. Once subscribed, the i'm Initiative trademark symbol that displays next to the user's name is all Microsoft needs for tracking. From there, every conversation the user engages in will direct a small portion of advertising revenue to the organization of the user's choice.

According to the Live Messenger team, “Not everyone has the financial ability to give money to the causes they care about. That is where the i’m Initiative steps in - it enables Windows Live Messenger users to make a difference by directing a portion of Messenger’s advertising revenue to a cause of their choosing.”

This unique program promises each of the nine participating non-profit organizations a bottom line earning of $100,000 for the first year of the program. There is no high end cap as to how much Microsoft will ultimately donate at year's end. In the program's first four months, over $35,000 has already been raised through Live Messenger usership.

Currently, 75% of all computer users utilize some form of an instant messaging service, 33% of which also send instant or text messages via cell phone. By 2008, it is estimated that over 500 million people will use an instant messaging program, sending greater than 45 billion messages daily.

While there is little doubt that this program benefits Windows Live Messenger in the amount of new user sign ups, it also serves as a highly visible way of bringing critical social issues to the attention of the online community. The i'm Initiative also gives a little steering power to the user as to which humanitarian effort they would most like the revenue to be shared with. That is quite an empowering proposition.

Critics of the initiative are quick to chastise the program on two fronts; the narrow availability of the program as it is currently offered only within the United States; and for Microsoft's alleged attempt to monopolize their messaging service through the i'm Initiative. In current arguments, the negativity seems to be lacking consideration that this particular endeavor stretches well beyond Microsoft. There are nine other players in the partnership, all of which have noble and ethical goals to raise awareness and funding for their respective causes.

The organizations partnering with Microsoft for the i'm Initiative are the American Red Cross, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, National AIDS Fund, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Sierra Club, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, U.S. Fund for UNICEF, ninemillion.org, and Stopglobalwarming.org.

The i'm Initiative brings forth an awareness of so many current and critical social issues that one would be hard pressed to find themselves unable to mesh with one of the organizations participating in the program. A detailed explanation of each of the participating organizations can be found on the i'm Initiative website.

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