What ? - You're serious ? - That's right, another Instant Messaging service.

Photo credit : jwlphotography

Is everyone clicking refresh on the Facebook main page hoping to be the first to grab their new Instant Messaging app ?  I didn't think so.  Who is begging for yet-another IM client ?  Because of the lack of federation, I already need to load up my MSN, Yahoo, AIM, Meanwhile (for Sametime at Work) accounts into Pidgin and Adium. 

If I was to join a new IM service, it would be a server-side aggregation service.  Thank goodness for Pidgin & Adium, but it's a pain needing to add all my accounts into them to perform client-side aggregation.  Server-side would let me sign in once, merge & prioritize centrally, perform AJAX-based content transformation for use on my mobile phone and ensure security (ideally via OTR or OpenID)

Rather than adding new IM clients & services, can't we move to a plug-in model to existing services ?  Pidgin allows me to insert quotes, see the local time of my remote colleagues, but why not snap in a Facebook plugin ? - While I'm on the plug-in rant, how about a Pidgin plug-in for Flock ?

I could rant for hours about my displeasure that Zuckerberg has decided that IM belongs in Facebook, but I'd rather hear from you.  Am I missing something ?  Is adding IM a 'natural evolution' to the Facebook "platform" - Comments as always are welcome.