ICQ launched in 1996 as one of the first widely used instant messaging services, and its short message alert quickly became familiar to millions of early internet users. The sound spread beyond the program itself as people shared it in videos, remixes, and soundboards, turning a simple notification into a symbol of nineties online life. Today creators still use it as a retro alternative to a modern Discord notification, because it instantly tells viewers a message has arrived while adding a layer of nostalgia that newer alerts do not carry.