Global Communications Network (GCN) is an instant messaging

Instant messaging

Instant Messaging is a form of real-time direct text-based chatting communication in push mode between two or more people using personal computers or other devices, along with shared clients. The user's text is conveyed over a network, such as the Internet...

 client for Microsoft Windows

Microsoft Windows

Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...

. The software and service are provided free of charge, and supported by banner advertisements. In addition to chat services, users are also provided with free e-mail and webspace.

GCN supports a number of conferencing tools, including audio chat rooms, multi-party video conferencing, whiteboards, and file transfers. An XMPP

Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol

Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol is an open-standard communications protocol for message-oriented middleware based on XML . The protocol was originally named Jabber, and was developed by the Jabber open-source community in 1999 for near-real-time, extensible instant messaging , presence...

 client is embedded, but only usable once signed in to the GCN service. The XMPP client only allows use of transports to communicate with users on AIM

AOL Instant Messenger

AOL Instant Messenger is an instant messaging and presence computer program which uses the proprietary OSCAR instant messaging protocol and the TOC protocol to allow registered users to communicate in real time. It was released by AOL in May 1997...

, .NET Messenger Service

.NET Messenger Service

The .NET Messenger Service is an instant messaging and presence system developed by Microsoft in 1999 for use with its MSN Messenger software and used today by its current instant messaging clients, Windows Live Messenger and Microsoft Messenger for Mac...

, Yahoo!

Yahoo! Messenger

Yahoo! Messenger is an advertisement-supported instant messaging client and associated protocol provided by Yahoo!...

, and ICQ

ICQ

ICQ is an instant messaging computer program, which was first developed and popularized by the Israeli company Mirabilis, then bought by America Online, and since April 2010 owned by Mail.ru Group. The name ICQ is a homophone for the phrase "I seek you"...

; typical XMPP messaging is not supported.

GCN was created by Jason Resch while in high school. The first official version was released in November 2000.