iPhone launch reveals bad news for Google[日付][dated[dated
If the latest reports are true, Apple users will have about two more weeks to wait for the release of iOS 18.1 and the belated arrival of Apple Intelligence, the standout feature of the latest iOS release. Until then, the most important update remains RCS, a further delayed upgrade to the iPhone’s standard SMS.
As I’ve commented before, there are a lot of gaps in Apple’s RCS upgrade. There’s no end-to-end encryption, patchy carrier adoption, full iMessage integration, and no end to the dreaded green bubble in sight. But with its own Android messaging app increasingly losing ground to WhatsApp and other over-the-tops, Google spent years campaigning hard to appease Apple into making the move. However, Apple appears to have put those concerns to rest as its significant user base in the US continues to use iMessage. among ourselves.
And while Google teased Apple over its compromised RCS implementation, no one doubted how welcome it would be. But there was always a risk that Google and its users wouldn’t get the level playing field they had hoped for, and that risk now appears to be coming true.
After all, Android permissions reported that “iPhone users aren’t as interested in RCS as their Android peers would have liked.” There are some obvious obstacles to accelerating adoption, particularly carrier support. But the real problem is much simpler: WhatsApp. This long-awaited partial integration of iMessage and Google Messages was so delayed that it locked WhatsApp out of almost every important market outside the US (and China, of course).
It’s been a few weeks since iOS 18 hit phones, and not a single person in the UK, Europe, or Asia has mentioned RCS to me. Everyone uses WhatsApp. Android permissions The same goes for reader comments. “I never understood the whole drama behind iMessage and RCS. 100% of my friends who use iPhone don’t know about iMessage. 100% of my friends who use Android don’t know about RCS. I don’t know about WhatsApp everywhere,” one said, while another said, “I don’t live in the United States, so it’s weird that I still message someone via SMS…’ doesn’t support RCS yet. When they eventually do, I’ll probably exclaim “hey, that’s nice.” Then open the WhatsApp app within 5 seconds. ”
Green bubbles, blue bubbles…
The irony for Apple and iMessage is that this year, just as RCS is going cross-platform, the momentum that WhatsApp has long enjoyed in other countries is finally emerging in the United States. “Today we have some exciting news to share with you,” WhatsApp announced in July. “As of this month, WhatsApp now has 100 million users in the United States.”
In reality, this is simply a reflection of what is happening within your family and friend group. RCS solves a problem that most people didn’t care about. “Many iPhone users are feeling RCS, but the benefits RCS offers only impact those living in North America, where iMessage is still a big player and the battle between the green and blue bubbles is It’s heating up. Others are most comfortable using messaging apps like WhatsApp and Messenger. Remember, this is not us.” Android permissions “That’s what people are saying,” he says.
Android’s painful feelings
last month, About cookies conducted an independent U.S. study and found that “More than 1 in 5 iPhone users (22%) say they think less of the other person when a green bubble appears during a text conversation; 1 in 3 people (23%) say it’s a problem.” Dating deal breakers. As a result, nearly a third (30%) of Android users considered switching to an iPhone due to too much pressure and ridicule. ”
And with the current rollout of RCS to iPhone, the green bubble will not disappear and nothing much will change. Typing indicators and clear images are good, but security and blue bubble cache seem better. But I will say this. About cookies“Good news? More than two in five iPhone owners (42%) rely on third-party messaging apps (like WhatsApp) to accommodate non-iOS users.” Good news for those users. Well, it’s not so great for Google and its millions of Messages users.
Apple’s decision to maintain various bubbles and adopt standard protocols that rely on carrier adoption rather than direct interfaces between itself and Google’s clients, at least at this early stage, is likely to result in RCS (no pun intended) seems to have burst the bubble. The GSMA, the mobile industry standards setter, is working specifically with Google on security, but that alone won’t solve the bubble problem.
The big question now is whether iMessage can protect its important U.S. market from this latest WhatApp surge, or even if nothing else prompts a rethink. . On the other hand, there are also some green (bubble) buds. Android Authority also had positive comments, although not as many. One reader said, “Having RCS messaging on my iPhone was a great experience.” “Having an Android device allows me to communicate with family and friends. Being able to send high-quality photos and videos was also a great experience.” After all, there may be more to play with. Watch this space…
