For those who came in late, the Rich Communication Services messaging standard is far superior to Apple’s iMessage standard. However, Jobs Mob did not want the standard near its overpriced shiny phones, presumably because it would allow iPhones to talk to Android phones in a way that looked similar.
When iPhone users chat, messages appear in a blue bubble, a status symbol for teen fanboys who can’t get a girlfriend and create peer pressure to buy an iPhone.
However, users did want Rich Communication Service messaging. At a 2022 Apple event, a reporter said his mother was an Android user, and it was difficult to share photos with her. He asked Apple CEO Tim Cook when Apple would support RCS. Cook told the reporter to get his mother an iPhone.
Meanwhile, the Tame Apple Press churned out stories claiming that Apple was right and should not be forced to adopt something less superior to iMessage, even while Android users found more reasons to use it. Meanwhile, Apple dug in its heels.
Yesterday, Apple suddenly changed its mind and said it would launch via a software update "later next year" and “bring a wide range of iMessage-style features to messaging between iPhone and Android users.”
The story is being tarted up with the Tame Apple press claiming that RCS has developed and become a more mature platform than it once was -- even if that required fanboys to believe the standard had "suddenly" become mature in the last two months.
The reality is that Apple's decision comes amid pressure from regulators and competitors like Google and Samsung. Apple’s move was a pretty obvious play to stifle competition and had nothing to do with functionality, and that was starting to get the EU watchdogs snuffling around.
In a statement to 9to5Mac, an Apple spokesperson said that the company believes RCS will offer better interoperability for cross-platform messages.
"Later next year, we will be adding support for RCS Universal Profile, the standard currently published by the GSM Association. We believe RCS Universal Profile will offer a better interoperability experience when compared to SMS or MMS. This will work alongside iMessage, which will continue to be the best and most secure messaging experience for Apple users," Apple said.