Apple Business Chat makes first European appearance at Cannes Lions festival

AppleInsider

Apple Business Chat, the company's business-focused messaging feature, made a limited appearance in Europe this week as the backbone of a concierge service providing information and guidance to Cannes Lions festival attendees.

According to developer and commerce solutions provider LivePerson, the Cannes Lions Concierge was the first appearance of Apple Business Chat service in Europe and the first to use Apple's technology to power a digital concierge service. Apple has not yet officially rolled out support for Business Chat in Europe.

Manned by a mix of human representatives and bots, Cannes Lions Concierge offered event attendees quick access to useful information directly from Messages on iPhone and iPad. For example, users were able to ping concierge services about event schedules, shopping and dining, parties, nearby places of interest, current goings-on and more.

"With the vast majority of Cannes Lions attendees using iOS, Apple Business Chat is the perfect solution for the concierge service," said Robert LoCascio, founder and CEO of LivePerson.

LivePerson and its LiveEngage platform powered the launch of Apple Business Chat integrations in the U.S. earlier this year, including a rollout by T-Mobile in April. Other notable partnerships include Discover, Lowe's and The Home Depot, all of which use Apple's service to communicate with customers via Messages on iPhone, iPad and Mac.

Introduced with the rollout of iOS 11.3 in March, Apple Business Chat provides businesses an outreach framework directly within Messages. The technology allows users to communicate with companies, and in some cases pay for services with Apple Pay, in a familiar format, all while protecting their privacy.

Cannes Lions is no stranger to new Apple technology. In 2015, festival coordinators integrated iBeacon tech into its official app to facilitate interactive experiences for attendees. Using Bluetooth Low Energy communications, iBeacons allow app makers to build in highly accurate location-based functionality like real-time venue information and social networking features.

Apple itself was on hand at Cannes Lions to accept awards for its marketing and branding efforts.

ascii

The third paragraph is why this is one of those technologies that will really take off. Businesses will realise that if they shift to chat instead of phone as their primary support mechanism (which a lot have already, though through the web instead of Messages) then replacing people with bots will be easier. Your support staff will only handle the most difficult 10% of questions.

Soli

ascii said:

The third paragraph is why this is one of those technologies that will really take off. Businesses will realise that if they shift to chat instead of phone as their primary support mechanism (which a lot have already, though through the web instead of Messages) then replacing people with bots will be easier. Your support staff will only handle the most difficult 10% of questions.

I don’t have much experience here but I’ve enjoyed chatting with Amazon’s chat service over the years.

ireland

Hopefully it means Apple support will stop using that janky, third-party, web support chat service. Also hope it is secure and only licenced support services will have header hero logo and verification check mark.

The main feature Messages is missing at this point is Android support. I keep educating Tim and Schiller why this is needed. If as a Mac and iPhone user I wish to quit using all third party messaging services, and continue to chat with everyone, I cannot. With iMessages on Android I’d say bye-bye to Facebook messseger etc. Having a version of iMessage on Android means owning an Apple device becomes even more compelling, considering it comes with end-to-end encrypted chat (that can potentially talk to everyone) bundled in device, by default. This and simplified iMessage signup and we’d be on our way.

GeorgeBMac

For me, this is a No-Go...

I am very stingy handing out my cell number.  Even if I trust the business to not misuse it, I realize that their DB is likely to be hacked sometime in the future and my information sold to spammers and spoofers.

For support, I'll stick to phone and web based chats....

(Yeh, I realize that won't stop everything.  But, you do what you can to minimize the risk)

mjtomlin

ireland said:

With iMessages on Android I’d say bye-bye to Facebook messseger etc. Having a version of iMessage on Android means owning an Apple device becomes even more compelling,

In order for that to work for you, you would have to get all your Android based FB friends to download and install Apple's Messages app. Which would put them in the exact same spot you're trying to get out of, the need for multiple messaging apps.

What would be more ideal for you (and most users) is for Apple to allow 3rd party messaging protocols in Messages.

Soli

mjtomlin said:

ireland said:

With iMessages on Android I’d say bye-bye to Facebook messseger etc. Having a version of iMessage on Android means owning an Apple device becomes even more compelling,

In order for that to work for you, you would have to get all your Android based FB friends to download and install Apple's Messages app. Which would put them in the exact same spot you're trying to get out of, the need for multiple messaging apps.

What would be more ideal for you (and most users) is for Apple to allow 3rd party messaging protocols in Messages.

I'm sure it's not what you mean, but they've been doing that from the beginning. SMS with iOS for iPhone and AIM, Yahoo, GTalk, Jabber, and others (as I recall) with Messages (or maybe that was all back in the iChat days.

I don't see SMS going away—although I do like Google's idea for a more robust, SMS-like, universal service—but I don't see 3rd-party chat clients being added to Messages on any platform going forward.

I just looked at Mojave Beta 2 and noticed there's no option for adding anything else. That sidebar is now gone. I could've sworn it was there in Beta 1, but I can't be certain. There's also no Add Account option in the Menu Bar dropdown. I don't see these getting folded back into the app nor for iMessage to get cross platform support, but I would like the latter if it could be made secure. Maybe iMessages in iCloud will lead to that.

PS:  I love using my Mac to make and send phone calls via my iPhone. That said, I really dislike how the service is still pushed via the FaceTime app. It works, but it also feels so bolted-on. They could also use with an option for a virtual phone keypad on screen because not everyone knows that they can use the number bar on their Mac to execute the tones while on a call, or that the small phone call overlay needs to be the foremost window for it to work.

Soli

GeorgeBMac said:

For me, this is a No-Go...

I am very stingy handing out my cell number.  Even if I trust the business to not misuse it, I realize that their DB is likely to be hacked sometime in the future and my information sold to spammers and spoofers.

For support, I'll stick to phone and web based chats....

(Yeh, I realize that won't stop everything.  But, you do what you can to minimize the risk)

I don't follow. You have to know that iMessage lets you choose an email address(es) or phone number for communication, and you can select a specific one in which start a new conversation.

I never use my phone number for iMessage and frankly I'd disable my phone number in iMessage altogether as receivable if it wasn't locked in for all iPhone users on iPhones.

Furthermore, if you want to give out a phone number for non-friends and family you should get a free phone number from some service, like Google Voice, that will not only take your calls, get audible VMs, and take your SMS messages, but will transcribe them (hysterically bad most of the time) into an email that you'll immediately receive with a link to the audio if you need it. I hate listening to VMs so I'm happy to have this repository so I can scan the text quickly to see if it's something I should listen to… which is almost never the case.

ireland

mjtomlin said:

ireland said:

With iMessages on Android I’d say bye-bye to Facebook messseger etc. Having a version of iMessage on Android means owning an Apple device becomes even more compelling,

In order for that to work for you, you would have to get all your Android based FB friends to download and install Apple's Messages app. Which would put them in the exact same spot you're trying to get out of, the need for multiple messaging apps.

What would be more ideal for you (and most users) is for Apple to allow 3rd party messaging protocols in Messages.

What you are suggesting is even less likely than what I am suggesting. And while I cannot fix the world for everyone, it would nice as a Mac an iPhone user that Apple made their messaging service cross-platform. It would enable many Apple users to use only Messages for commutation, as I'd imagine most Android users would grab iMessage on the Play Store, at least to check it out, even. There is no one with a privacy story and privacy reputation like Apple's, and I think it would matter even to many Android users. Given the option many of them would grab iMessage. And I think, if Apple made a petty decent app there, it would entice many an Android user into wanting an iPhone. Many more than would want to go in the other direction, in my opinion. But biggest of all, it makes owning an iPhone or Mac now a better experience than it was previously, with the potential of messaging anyone they know from the Messages app that comes preinstalled in the dock of any Mac or the home screen of any iOS device.

GeorgeBMac

Soli said:

GeorgeBMac said:

For me, this is a No-Go...

I am very stingy handing out my cell number.  Even if I trust the business to not misuse it, I realize that their DB is likely to be hacked sometime in the future and my information sold to spammers and spoofers.

For support, I'll stick to phone and web based chats....

(Yeh, I realize that won't stop everything.  But, you do what you can to minimize the risk)

I don't follow. You have to know that iMessage lets you choose an email address(es) or phone number for communication, and you can select a specific one in which start a new conversation.

I never use my phone number for iMessage and frankly I'd disable my phone number in iMessage altogether as receivable if it wasn't locked in for all iPhone users on iPhones.

Furthermore, if you want to give out a phone number for non-friends and family you should get a free phone number from some service, like Google Voice, that will not only take your calls, get audible VMs, and take your SMS messages, but will transcribe them (hysterically bad most of the time) into an email that you'll immediately receive with a link to the audio if you need it. I hate listening to VMs so I'm happy to have this repository so I can scan the text quickly to see if it's something I should listen to… which is almost never the case.

Yeh, good point....   I was aware of the email option but always avoided using it for some reason.  But that makes a nice alternative...

Koll3man

LoL business in Europe are already very comfortably using Whatsapp for example.
Most smartphone users in Europe don't own an iphone.

[Deleted User]

I wonder if it accounts for local languages and dialects ...

>Fit like Hilton.
<Good morning, my name is Anna. How may I help you?
>Hoo muckle points hiv ah got on ma acoont? Enuff fir twa nichts at th' New York Hilton Midtoon?
<I... er...
>Fits at Anna? jist th' wan nicht en? 
<... computer says no.