<s>
Tencent	B-Operating_System
QQ	I-Operating_System
(	O
)	O
,	O
also	O
known	O
as	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
,	O
is	O
an	O
instant	B-Application
messaging	I-Application
software	O
service	O
and	O
web	O
portal	O
developed	O
by	O
the	O
Chinese	O
technology	O
company	O
Tencent	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
QQ	B-Operating_System
offers	O
services	O
that	O
provide	O
online	O
social	O
games	O
,	O
music	O
,	O
shopping	O
,	O
microblogging	B-Application
,	O
movies	O
,	O
and	O
group	B-Application
and	I-Application
voice	I-Application
chat	I-Application
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
March	O
2022	O
,	O
there	O
were	O
563.8	O
million	O
monthly	O
active	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
accounts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tencent	B-Operating_System
QQ	I-Operating_System
was	O
first	O
released	O
in	O
China	O
in	O
February	O
1999	O
under	O
the	O
name	O
of	O
OICQ	B-Operating_System
(	O
"	O
Open	O
ICQ	B-Protocol
"	O
,	O
a	O
reference	O
to	O
the	O
early	O
IM	O
service	O
ICQ	B-Protocol
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
threat	O
of	O
a	O
trademark	O
infringement	O
lawsuit	O
by	O
the	O
AOL-owned	O
ICQ	B-Protocol
,	O
the	O
product	O
's	O
name	O
was	O
changed	O
to	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
(	O
with	O
"	O
Q	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
"	O
used	O
to	O
imply	O
"	O
cute	O
"	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
software	O
inherited	O
existing	O
functions	O
from	O
ICQ	B-Protocol
,	O
and	O
additional	O
features	O
such	O
as	O
software	O
skins	O
,	O
people	O
's	O
images	O
,	O
and	O
emoticons	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
QQ	B-Operating_System
was	O
first	O
released	O
as	O
a	O
"	O
network	B-Protocol
paging	I-Protocol
"	O
real-time	O
communications	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
features	O
were	O
later	O
added	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
chatrooms	O
,	O
games	O
,	O
personal	B-Application
avatars	I-Application
(	O
similar	O
to	O
"	O
Meego	O
"	O
in	O
MSN	B-Protocol
)	O
,	O
online	B-Application
storage	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Internet	O
dating	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
official	O
client	O
runs	O
on	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
and	O
a	O
beta	O
public	O
version	O
was	O
launched	O
for	O
Mac	B-Operating_System
OS	I-Operating_System
X	I-Operating_System
version	O
10.4.9	O
or	O
newer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Formerly	O
,	O
two	O
web	O
versions	O
,	O
WebQQ	O
(	O
full	O
version	O
)	O
and	O
WebQQ	O
Mini	O
(	O
Lite	O
version	O
)	O
,	O
which	O
made	O
use	O
of	O
Ajax	B-General_Concept
,	O
were	O
available	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
31	O
July	O
2008	O
,	O
Tencent	O
released	O
an	O
official	O
client	O
for	O
Linux	O
,	O
but	O
this	O
has	O
not	O
been	O
made	O
compatible	O
with	O
the	O
Windows	O
version	O
and	O
it	O
is	O
not	O
capable	O
of	O
voice	B-Protocol
chat	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
to	O
competition	O
with	O
other	O
instant	B-Application
messengers	I-Application
,	O
such	O
as	O
Windows	B-Protocol
Live	I-Protocol
Messenger	I-Protocol
,	O
Tencent	O
released	O
Tencent	O
Messenger	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
aimed	O
at	O
businesses	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tencent	B-Operating_System
QQ	I-Operating_System
holds	O
the	O
Guinness	O
World	O
Record	O
for	O
the	O
highest	O
number	O
of	O
simultaneous	O
online	O
users	O
on	O
an	O
instant	B-Application
messaging	I-Application
program	O
with	O
210,212,085	O
users	O
online	O
on	O
July	O
3	O
,	O
2014	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2003	O
,	O
however	O
,	O
this	O
decision	O
was	O
reversed	O
due	O
to	O
pressure	O
from	O
other	O
instant	B-Application
messaging	I-Application
services	O
such	O
as	O
Windows	B-Protocol
Live	I-Protocol
Messenger	I-Protocol
and	O
Sina	O
UC	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tencent	O
currently	O
offers	O
a	O
premium	O
membership	O
scheme	O
,	O
where	O
premium	O
members	O
enjoy	O
features	O
such	O
as	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
mobile	O
,	O
ringtone	O
downloads	O
,	O
and	O
SMS	O
sending/receiving	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Red	O
for	O
the	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Show	O
service	O
which	O
features	O
some	O
superficial	O
abilities	O
such	O
as	O
having	O
a	O
colored	O
account	O
name	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Blue	O
to	O
obtain	O
special	O
abilities	O
in	O
the	O
game-plays	O
of	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pink	O
for	O
having	O
different	O
boosts	O
in	O
the	O
pet-raising	O
game	O
called	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Pet	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Green	O
for	O
using	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
music	O
—	O
a	O
service	O
for	O
users	O
to	O
stream	O
music	O
online	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Black	O
for	O
gaining	O
benefits	O
related	O
to	O
DNF	O
(	O
Dungeon	B-Protocol
&	I-Protocol
Fighter	I-Protocol
)	O
,	O
a	O
multiplayer	O
PC	O
beat	O
'	O
em	O
up	O
video	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Coin	O
is	O
a	O
virtual	B-Application
currency	I-Application
used	O
by	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
users	O
to	O
"	O
purchase	O
"	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
related	O
items	O
for	O
their	O
avatar	B-Application
and	O
blog	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
QQ	B-Operating_System
Coins	O
are	O
obtained	O
either	O
by	O
purchase	O
(	O
one	O
coin	O
for	O
one	O
RMB	O
)	O
or	O
by	O
using	O
the	O
mobile	O
phone	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Due	O
to	O
the	O
popularity	O
of	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
among	O
young	O
people	O
in	O
China	O
,	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Coins	O
are	O
accepted	O
by	O
online	O
vendors	O
in	O
exchange	O
for	O
"	O
real	O
"	O
merchandise	O
such	O
as	O
small	O
gifts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
People	O
's	O
Bank	O
of	O
China	O
,	O
China	O
's	O
central	O
bank	O
,	O
tried	O
to	O
crack	O
down	O
on	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Coins	O
due	O
to	O
people	O
using	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Coins	O
in	O
exchange	O
for	O
real	O
world	O
goods	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
this	O
only	O
caused	O
the	O
value	O
of	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
coins	O
to	O
rise	O
as	O
more	O
and	O
more	O
third-party	O
vendors	O
started	O
to	O
accept	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tencent	O
claims	O
the	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Coin	O
is	O
a	O
mere	O
regular	O
commodity	O
,	O
and	O
is	O
,	O
therefore	O
,	O
not	O
a	O
currency	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Q	O
Zone	O
is	O
a	O
personal	O
blog	O
for	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2009	O
,	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
began	O
to	O
expand	O
its	O
services	O
internationally	O
with	O
its	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
International	O
client	O
for	O
Windows	O
distributed	O
through	O
a	O
dedicated	O
English-language	O
portal	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
QQ	B-Operating_System
International	O
offers	O
non-Mandarin	O
speakers	O
the	O
opportunity	O
to	O
use	O
most	O
of	O
the	O
features	O
of	O
its	O
Chinese	O
counterpart	O
to	O
get	O
in	O
touch	O
with	O
other	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
users	O
via	O
chat	O
,	O
VoIP	B-Application
,	O
and	O
video	O
calls	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
provides	O
a	O
non-Mandarin	O
interface	O
to	O
access	O
Qzone	O
,	O
Tencent	O
's	O
social	O
network	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
of	O
the	O
main	O
features	O
of	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
International	O
is	O
the	O
optional	O
and	O
automatic	O
machine	B-Application
translation	I-Application
in	O
all	O
chats	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
Android	O
version	O
of	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
International	O
was	O
released	O
in	O
September	O
2013	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
to	O
text	O
messaging	B-Protocol
,	O
users	O
can	O
send	O
each	O
other	O
images	O
,	O
videos	O
,	O
and	O
audio	O
media	O
messages	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
QQ	B-Operating_System
International	O
for	O
iPhone	O
and	O
iOS	O
devices	O
was	O
released	O
at	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
2013	O
,	O
fully	O
equivalent	O
to	O
its	O
Android	O
counterpart	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Vietnam	O
,	O
Tencent	O
has	O
struck	O
a	O
deal	O
with	O
VinaGame	O
to	O
bring	O
the	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Casual	O
Gaming	O
portal	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Messenger	I-Operating_System
as	O
an	O
addition	O
to	O
the	O
already	O
thriving	O
Vietnamese	O
gaming	O
communities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
,	O
Tencent	O
has	O
partnered	O
with	O
AOL	O
to	O
bring	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Games	O
as	O
a	O
contender	O
in	O
the	O
US	O
social	O
gaming	O
market	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Launched	O
in	O
2007	O
,	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Games	O
came	O
bundled	O
with	O
the	O
AIM	O
installer	O
,	O
and	O
competed	O
with	O
AOL	O
's	O
own	O
games.com	O
to	O
provide	O
a	O
gaming	O
experience	O
for	O
the	O
AIM	O
user	O
base	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tencent	O
launched	O
its	O
web-based	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
formally	O
on	O
15	O
September	O
2009	O
,	O
the	O
latest	O
version	O
of	O
which	O
being	O
3.0	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
mid-2010	O
,	O
Tencent	O
changed	O
direction	O
and	O
replaced	O
Xiaoyou	O
with	O
Pengyou	O
( 朋友	O
,	O
'	O
friends	O
 '	O
)	O
,	O
trying	O
to	O
establish	O
a	O
more	O
widespread	O
network	O
,	O
to	O
which	O
extant	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
users	O
could	O
be	O
easily	O
redirected	O
,	O
hence	O
giving	O
Pengyou	O
a	O
major	O
advantage	O
over	O
its	O
competitors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tencent	O
's	O
social	O
network	O
Qzone	O
is	O
linked	O
to	O
in	O
the	O
International	O
and	O
native	O
versions	O
of	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Using	O
reverse	O
engineering	O
,	O
open	O
source	O
communities	O
have	O
come	O
to	O
understand	O
the	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
protocol	O
better	O
and	O
have	O
attempted	O
to	O
implement	O
client	O
core	O
libraries	O
compatible	O
with	O
more	O
user-friendly	O
clients	O
,	O
free	O
of	O
advertisements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
of	O
these	O
clients	O
are	O
cross-platform	B-Operating_System
,	O
so	O
they	O
are	O
usable	O
on	O
operating	O
systems	O
which	O
the	O
official	O
client	O
does	O
not	O
support	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Furthermore	O
,	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
's	O
parent	O
company	O
,	O
Tencent	O
,	O
has	O
over	O
successive	O
versions	O
modified	O
the	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
protocol	O
to	O
the	O
extent	O
that	O
it	O
can	O
no	O
longer	O
be	O
supported	O
by	O
most	O
,	O
and	O
perhaps	O
any	O
,	O
of	O
the	O
third-party	O
implementations	O
that	O
were	O
successful	O
in	O
the	O
past	O
(	O
some	O
of	O
which	O
are	O
listed	O
below	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
2009	O
,	O
none	O
of	O
the	O
developers	O
of	O
third-party	O
clients	O
have	O
publicized	O
any	O
plans	O
to	O
restore	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
support	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Miranda	B-Protocol
NG	I-Protocol
,	O
an	O
open	O
source	O
multiprotocol	O
client	O
,	O
designed	O
for	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
,	O
with	O
MirandaQQ2	O
plugin	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tencent	O
has	O
taken	O
advantage	O
of	O
the	O
popularity	O
of	O
the	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
brand	O
and	O
has	O
set	O
up	O
many	O
Q-Gen	O
stores	O
selling	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
branded	O
merchandise	O
such	O
as	O
bags	O
,	O
watches	O
,	O
clothing	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
toy	O
penguins	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
accounts	O
of	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
are	O
purely	O
a	O
combination	O
of	O
numbers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1995	O
,	O
the	O
registered	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
accounts	O
had	O
only	O
5	O
digits	O
,	O
while	O
currently	O
,	O
the	O
digital	O
numbers	O
used	O
for	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
accounts	O
has	O
reached	O
12	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
number	O
is	O
held	O
by	O
Ma	O
Huateng	O
and	O
his	O
account	O
number	O
is	O
10001	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
membership	O
of	O
a	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
account	O
normally	O
lasts	O
for	O
a	O
month	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
relation	O
to	O
calculating	O
"	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
Age	O
"	O
,	O
being	O
logged	O
in	O
for	O
2	O
full	O
hours	O
would	O
be	O
considered	O
as	O
one	O
full	O
day	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thus	O
,	O
being	O
logged	O
in	O
to	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
for	O
around	O
700	O
hours	O
would	O
make	O
the	O
age	O
increase	O
by	O
1	O
year	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
2012	O
version	O
of	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
,	O
users	O
can	O
see	O
the	O
age	O
on	O
the	O
personal	O
information	O
page	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2004	O
,	O
Tencent	O
launched	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
hierarchy	O
which	O
shows	O
the	O
level	O
of	O
a	O
registered	O
member	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
very	O
beginning	O
,	O
this	O
hierarchy	O
was	O
solely	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
hours	O
a	O
member	O
spent	O
in	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Coral	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
,	O
a	O
modification	O
of	O
Tencent	B-Operating_System
QQ	I-Operating_System
,	O
is	O
another	O
add-on	O
for	O
the	O
software	O
,	O
providing	O
free	O
access	O
to	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
services	O
and	O
blocking	O
Tencent	O
's	O
advertisements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2006	O
,	O
Tencent	O
filed	O
a	O
copyright	O
lawsuit	O
against	O
Chen	O
Shoufu	O
(	O
aka	O
Soft	O
)	O
,	O
the	O
author	O
of	O
Coral	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
,	O
after	O
his	O
distribution	O
of	O
a	O
modified	O
Tencent	B-Operating_System
QQ	I-Operating_System
was	O
ruled	O
illegal	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2010	O
,	O
Chinese	O
anti-virus	O
company	O
,	O
Qihoo	O
360	O
,	O
analyzed	O
the	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
protocol	O
and	O
accused	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
of	O
automatically	O
scanning	O
users	O
 '	O
computers	O
and	O
uploading	O
their	O
personal	O
information	O
to	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
's	O
servers	O
without	O
the	O
users	O
 '	O
consent	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
,	O
Tencent	O
called	O
360	O
a	O
malware	O
and	O
denied	O
users	O
of	O
installing	O
360	O
access	O
to	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
's	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
observers	O
have	O
criticized	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
's	O
compliance	O
in	O
the	O
Chinese	O
government	O
's	O
Internet	O
surveillance	O
and	O
censorship	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
2013	O
report	O
by	O
Reporters	O
Without	O
Borders	O
specifically	O
mentioned	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
as	O
allowing	O
authorities	O
to	O
monitor	O
online	O
conversations	O
for	O
keywords	O
or	O
phrases	O
and	O
track	O
participants	O
by	O
their	O
user	O
number	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Chinese	O
version	O
of	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
makes	O
use	O
of	O
embedded	O
advertisements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Both	O
the	O
Chinese	O
and	O
International	O
versions	O
of	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
had	O
been	O
tested	O
in	O
2013	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
March	O
6	O
,	O
2015	O
,	O
QQ	B-Operating_System
scored	O
2	O
out	O
of	O
7	O
points	O
on	O
the	O
Electronic	O
Frontier	O
Foundation	O
's	O
secure	O
messaging	B-Protocol
scorecard	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
the	O
code	O
is	O
not	O
open-source	B-Application
)	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
security	O
design	O
is	O
not	O
properly	O
documented	O
.	O
</s>
