Yahoo! Messenger Celebrates the 25th Anniversary of the Emoticon

Yahoo! Messenger Celebrates the 25th Anniversary of the Emoticon and Challenges Users to Create the Next Generation of Smiley Faces

BANGALORE – July 2, 2007 – 2007 marks the 25th anniversary of the emoticon, the familiar form of expression first introduced in 1982 that today has become one of the most recognized symbols in digital communication. In honor of the 25th anniversary, Yahoo! Messenger is celebrating with its Emoticontest, and inviting consumers to submit their favorite expressions to compete for the next set of emoticons. The winners’ emoticons will be featured on Yahoo! Messenger’s service worldwide.

“For 25 years, the ‘smiley’ :) and his happy parenthetical-powered friends have added a critical layer of expression to our daily online conversations. When you can’t hear someone’s voice or see their face, emoticons are there to help us express what simple words can’t,” said Jeff Bonforte, vice president, Yahoo! Messenger. “Nearly 85% of people using Yahoo! Messenger daily rely on emoticons to add color and character to their communication. Our users are the experts and to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the emoticon, we are asking Yahoo! Messenger users to create the next generation of smiley faces.”

Yahoo! Messenger was the first major instant messaging service to offer animated emoticons in 2002 and take the smiley face to the next level in web communication. As part of the emoticon celebration, Yahoo! conducted a survey of 40,000 Yahoo! Messenger users, to reveal where and how emoticons play a role in everyday communication:

· “Emoti-sential”: 82% of those who use Yahoo! Messenger daily use emoticons in their IM conversations.

· LOL: A whopping 83% of respondents say that “happiness” is one of the two emotions they express most often using emoticons. “Flirting” is the second favorite emotion and next most expressed.

· I Heart You: More than half of those surveyed think that feelings of love are easier to convey using emoticons than in person – 57% of respondents would rather tell a “crush” their true feelings using an emoticon. 10% of respondents would go as far as proposing marriage to their loved one via IM.

· It’s Not You, It’s Me: Some things are better said in person. Men and women both agree that telling someone “things aren’t working out” or “we should break up” is better said face to face – only 12% of females and 11% of males would opt for a break-up with an emoticon.

· “Emoti-Graphic” Memory: 66% of Yahoo! Messenger users have memorized the text characters for three or more emoticons – 19% of respondents have memorized more than 10.

· Express Yourself: The majority of survey respondents say they best express themselves in IM using emoticons. Nearly two-thirds (61%) rely on emoticons to best express their feelings, while 17% rely on Internet slang (i.e. LOL, GR8) and 13% rely on photo sharing.

· Gen IM: Respondents from the ages of 19 to 25 are the most avid emoticon users, with 68% in this age group using emoticons on a daily basis. But it’s not just the younger generation embracing emoticons – nearly half (48%) of respondents over the age of 50 are using emoticons in their everyday communication.

· It’s a Girl Thing: 82% of respondents think that women are more likely to use emoticons than men.

· You’re Fired!: Men are slightly more prone to use IM and emoticons to fire someone (14%) versus women (11%).

As the first person to use this form of non-verbal communication, Professor Scott Fahlman of Carnegie Mellon University takes special pride in the anniversary of the emoticon.

“When I first created the :-) text smiley face, I never thought it would take off the way it has,” said Professor Fahlman. “It started as a way to show humor to a community of computer scientists, but now, 25 years later, consumers far and wide have really embraced the emoticon in their non-verbal communication to show emotions like happiness, love and concern, especially while instant messaging. The smiley has come a long way.”

About the Emoticontest:

Be the new face of Yahoo! Messenger! Yahoo! Messenger will add six new animated emoticons to its service in the coming months. To enter Yahoo! Messenger’s Emoticontest, go to: http://messenger.yahoo.com/emoticontest.php and submit a photo of a signature look or favorite expression. The Bix online community will vote on the submissions and determine the next generation of emoticons in Yahoo! Messenger.

The contest is running in the U.S., India and Vietnam until July 31, 2007.

About Yahoo! Messenger

As one of the most popular instant messaging services on the Internet, Yahoo! Messenger (http://messenger.yahoo.com) makes it easier than ever for people to express themselves, interact and manage relationships with friends and family. The new web-based Yahoo! Messenger for the Web enables consumers to connect with friends and family from anywhere with an Internet connection – café, works, airport – with no download required. Yahoo! Messenger has a unique and proven history of innovation in instant messaging as the first to offer Webcam functionality, the first to introduce an interactive and shared experience with IMVironments®, and the first to introduce animated emoticons. Yahoo! Messenger continues to the lead the marketplace by integrating with leading Yahoo! services including games, music, photos and search, and providing the greatest choice for consumers to stay connected to one another through text IM, PC-based calling, e-mail, video and mobile text messaging.

Yahoo! and the Yahoo! logo are registered trademarks of Yahoo! Inc. All other names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective owners. © 2007 Yahoo! Inc., All rights reserved.

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