Tip: Setting Falkland Islands as my location and clearing age and gender helped me get about 95% less spam in Skype. (On ICQ the decrease in spam was noticable, but not so big).
I still have one but I never actually log in - got the 6 digit even (#924218). I didn't realize it was an active, viable service still. At least at a level of independent value that makes it worth selling off.
Yup - it was pervasive when I first used it. It was an amazing way to tie in people from diff. online communities with whom I'd otherwise have much less interaction.
At one point I recall them moving ICQ To the Oscar (early AIM) protocol but it was dying by then, replaced with the other 800000 IM systems available.
I have a 6-digit UIN, and I get bombarded daily with russian spam.
Then again, I almost never talk to someone over ICQ so I could just shut it down, but then again I'm running Miranda so one more protocol doesn't bother me much.
I wonder if this will increase or decrease the amount of Russian spam I receive through the service. I know some who get bombarded daily.