AOL intros free IM, SMS service in India

BANGALORE, INDIA: AOL today announced that users of desktop AOL Mail or AOL Messenger service in India can now send free instant messages and SMSes to Indian mobiles.

Recipients can also respond to the messages instantly. The company said that the service is supported on most Indian carriers like Airtel, Vodafone, Spice, Aircel and MTNL.

"The mobile market in India has outpaced the internet market in terms of growth rate. We feel that our suite of services will help bridge the divide between the growing mobile market and the Internet market in India," said PG Ponnapa, VP and GM, India Portal, AOL.