Android amps up campaign to push Apple into adopting RCS

Posted:
in General Discussion edited August 2022
Android has launched a new website highlighting some of the challenges in interoperability between Android and iOS -- and has urged Apple to adopt RCS to address it.

Green bubbles & blue bubbles
Green bubbles & blue bubbles


The new webpage, published the same day as Samsung's Unpacked event, tackles a range of common complaints from Android and iOS users about communication and collaboration between the two software platforms.

Some of the issues include broken group chats, lack of end-to-end encryption and typing indicators, low-quality media, and more. Android believes Apple can solve these problems by adopting the net-generation texting standard Rich Communications Services (RCS).

RCS is a next-generation protocol meant to replace the aging SMS standard. The system will bring a number of iMessage-like features to Android, including cross-platform stickers, read receipts, encryption, Wi-Fi texting, and more.

However, RCS in its current form is a messy standard, with not all carriers, device makers, and operating systems supporting it. In other words, it's currently an option but not a standard.

This isn't the first time that Google as tried to hammer on the "green bubble, blue bubble" issue.

Google has alleged in the past that Apple uses text colors in Messages to "bully" Android users. Third-party reports have also made claims that the text color code system puts pressure on users -- such as teens -- to switch to iPhone.

Android and Google have also made moves to try and get Apple to adopt RCS. Back in 2021, a Google executive extended an "open invitation" to help Apple support the protocol.

Apple doesn't currently have much reason to adopt RCS, since the protocol doesn't add anything than iMessage lacks. However, the Cupertino tech giant could be pressured into offering it as an alternative to iMessage if it actually becomes a standard.

Read on AppleInsider
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 35
    anonymouseanonymouse Posts: 6,857member
    So, let's suppose Apple adds RCS support to Messages.app. That isn't going to eliminate the Green and Blue bubble pseudo-issue. iMessage isn't going to go anywhere, and will remain the default messaging for Apple devices. RCS isn't supported everywhere for all phones, so SMS can't really go away anyway. The only change might be they introduce a 3rd color bubble to indicate that the message was sent via RCS, so maybe we'd have green, blue and red (pink?) bubbles.

    I for one want to know what messaging system my messages are being sent over. Doesn't everyone?
    edited August 2022 JP234baconstanglolliverwatto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 35
    igorskyigorsky Posts: 752member
    Read the comments in the article from RCS users. Sounds like a little bit of a $h!tshow that's validating Apple's position.
    williamlondonlolliverJP234Bart Ywatto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 35
    vztrv1vztrv1 Posts: 19member
    Just my opinion but I think Apple should support it but in a new color. RCS is an improvement over SMS although not as secure as iMessage.  Still SMS is so old I’d rather an RCS chat with a droid than SMS.
    baconstangkkqd1337williamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 35
    danoxdanox Posts: 2,804member
    vztrv1 said:
    Just my opinion but I think Apple should support it but in a new color. RCS is an improvement over SMS although not as secure as iMessage.  Still SMS is so old I’d rather an RCS chat with a droid than SMS.
    No need to support it……
    igorskywatto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 35
    Why not see Apple release iMessage as an Android app?  It would leave SMS/MMS to Android users, bring blue-bubble to both sides of the user views and give true E2EE for all users.  Secure and assured delivery.  The answer to me is that iMessage is a product lock-in for the iOS ecosystem.  But counterpoint, so was Apple-Music which is now available in Android.  -RJ
    chasmwilliamlondonpscooter63watto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 35
    darelrexdarelrex Posts: 134member
    If all/most Android phone makers agree to adopt RCS, and if they get it working correctly on all/most Android phones, to the point that Android users are having a smooth, consistent, RCS experience when messaging each other, and the only ones missing out on those RCS messages are iPhone users — then, I'm betting, Apple will suddenly launch support for RCS.

    But if the Android people can't get it together like that? Then Apple won't touch it. Why the hell would they? Google wants Apple to adopt it so Apple can provide the magic glue that gets everybody else in line with it. Apple would be a complete chump if it fell for that.

    Google told us for a decade or more that Android was surely going to replace iPhone, that it was a big advantage that Android phones are made by fifty different companies. Alright, Google, show us your big advantage: make RCS a success without Apple's help.
    anonymouseroundaboutnowlolliverdanoxpscooter63beowulfschmidtappleinsideruserBart Ywatto_cobratmay
  • Reply 7 of 35
    anonymouseanonymouse Posts: 6,857member
    newtonrj said:
    Why not see Apple release iMessage as an Android app?  It would leave SMS/MMS to Android users, bring blue-bubble to both sides of the user views and give true E2EE for all users.  Secure and assured delivery.  The answer to me is that iMessage is a product lock-in for the iOS ecosystem.  But counterpoint, so was Apple-Music which is now available in Android.  -RJ
    "Blue Bubble" is simply an indicator that the message was sent using iMessages. Green indicates it was sent via SMS. A message sent via RCS would require a 3rd color that would not be blue. So there will never be blue bubbles for "both sides" since the bubble color indicates the messaging protocol used.

    iMessage is not lock-in, it's simply a benefit you get with Apple products. Why should Apple give that benefit to users of other products when they don't charge for the service and make no money from it? In contrast Apple Music/iTunes is a service that Apple makes money from, so it makes sense to have it available for other platforms.
    baconstangpscooter63igorskytdknoxBart Ywatto_cobra
  • Reply 8 of 35
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,624member
    JP234 said:
    Note to Android: Put on your big boy pants and develop a platform people want. Give up the doomed attempt to get Apple to cram your flaws into iOS.
    Android users don't give a hoot about any of this. The world uses Whatsapp and all issues vanish. If anything it is iOS users who end up changing app. 
    JP234muthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 9 of 35
    jcs2305jcs2305 Posts: 1,336member
    newtonrj said:
    Why not see Apple release iMessage as an Android app?  It would leave SMS/MMS to Android users, bring blue-bubble to both sides of the user views and give true E2EE for all users.  Secure and assured delivery.  The answer to me is that iMessage is a product lock-in for the iOS ecosystem.  But counterpoint, so was Apple-Music which is now available in Android.  -RJ
    Apple music doesn't need the encryption or security that iMessage does. You can send cash to people via iMessage as well as a ton of personal info. I see what you are saying, but the two aren't comparable.

    lolliverwatto_cobra
  • Reply 10 of 35
    jcs2305jcs2305 Posts: 1,336member
    avon b7 said:
    JP234 said:
    Note to Android: Put on your big boy pants and develop a platform people want. Give up the doomed attempt to get Apple to cram your flaws into iOS.
    Android users don't give a hoot about any of this. The world uses Whatsapp and all issues vanish. If anything it is iOS users who end up changing app. 
    If someone sends a message from whatsapp to iMessage it's the same result? Reduced functionality and a green bubble? No?

    pscooter63watto_cobra
  • Reply 11 of 35
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,624member
    jcs2305 said:
    avon b7 said:
    JP234 said:
    Note to Android: Put on your big boy pants and develop a platform people want. Give up the doomed attempt to get Apple to cram your flaws into iOS.
    Android users don't give a hoot about any of this. The world uses Whatsapp and all issues vanish. If anything it is iOS users who end up changing app. 
    If someone sends a message from whatsapp to iMessage it's the same result? Reduced functionality and a green bubble? No?

    I have no idea. 

    From my address book on Android, I can see who has Whatsapp and then that is what is used (doesn't matter if that user is on iOS or not).

    If there is no Whatsapp option then I would try Signal, Line, Telegram etc before falling back on the stock Android message app. 

    I do not know anyone on iOS that uses Messages. It's mainly Whatsapp for those people. 


    muthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 12 of 35
    anonymouseanonymouse Posts: 6,857member
    avon b7 said:
    jcs2305 said:
    avon b7 said:
    JP234 said:
    Note to Android: Put on your big boy pants and develop a platform people want. Give up the doomed attempt to get Apple to cram your flaws into iOS.
    Android users don't give a hoot about any of this. The world uses Whatsapp and all issues vanish. If anything it is iOS users who end up changing app. 
    If someone sends a message from whatsapp to iMessage it's the same result? Reduced functionality and a green bubble? No?

    I have no idea. 

    From my address book on Android, I can see who has Whatsapp and then that is what is used (doesn't matter if that user is on iOS or not).

    If there is no Whatsapp option then I would try Signal, Line, Telegram etc before falling back on the stock Android message app. 

    I do not know anyone on iOS that uses Messages. It's mainly Whatsapp for those people. 
    In the US, the overwhelming majority of iOS users will be using Messages. Outside the US, it's a different matter.
    baconstangwatto_cobratmay
  • Reply 13 of 35
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,624member
    avon b7 said:
    jcs2305 said:
    avon b7 said:
    JP234 said:
    Note to Android: Put on your big boy pants and develop a platform people want. Give up the doomed attempt to get Apple to cram your flaws into iOS.
    Android users don't give a hoot about any of this. The world uses Whatsapp and all issues vanish. If anything it is iOS users who end up changing app. 
    If someone sends a message from whatsapp to iMessage it's the same result? Reduced functionality and a green bubble? No?

    I have no idea. 

    From my address book on Android, I can see who has Whatsapp and then that is what is used (doesn't matter if that user is on iOS or not).

    If there is no Whatsapp option then I would try Signal, Line, Telegram etc before falling back on the stock Android message app. 

    I do not know anyone on iOS that uses Messages. It's mainly Whatsapp for those people. 
    In the US, the overwhelming majority of iOS users will be using Messages. Outside the US, it's a different matter.
    Definitely. It's a major factor to take into consideration. 
  • Reply 14 of 35
    entropysentropys Posts: 4,152member
    The trouble with RCS is it is all over the shop depending on who your carrier is and which country you live in. It is not a uniform product.
    it is half arsed, as we would say in my country.
    Bart Ywatto_cobratmay
  • Reply 15 of 35
    chasmchasm Posts: 3,274member
    Avon B7 (presumably reading from the comfort of the Liberator) is right. WhatsApp is the real concern. Apple needs to upgrade iMessage to a multi-platform, worldwide messaging app.

    To answer the question posed earlier, if you try to send a WhatsApp message to anyone who doesn’t have WhatsApp, it goes nowhere. That’s WhatsApp’s fatal flaw, and exactly what Apple could attack with iMessage for Android.

    Also, I don’t believe anything noted liar Zuck Finn says about WhatsApp and it’s privacy/security. I only note that the federal agencies screaming about iMessage’s encryption are curiously quiet about Android and WhatsApp … even though the user base for RCS/SMS and WhatsApp are likely larger than iMessage …
    entropyslolliverJP234baconstangBart Ywatto_cobra
  • Reply 16 of 35
    mattinozmattinoz Posts: 2,299member
    What is the patent situation with RCS is there a pool a patents to cover the implimentation or when someone with money implements it are they going to get hit with a raft of Law suits?

    There must be a reason, probably non-technical that Apple didn't open Source FaceTime and iMessage a decade ago.
    https://9to5mac.com/2018/06/06/make-facetime-an-open-standard/
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 17 of 35
    HrebHreb Posts: 82member
    There are going to be billions of users who are reachable via RCS but not by Apple iMessage.  Given the state of SMS that seems like a pretty compelling reason to support RCS in addition to imessage (and SMS).
  • Reply 18 of 35
    i-johni-john Posts: 13member
    JP234 said:
    Note to Android: Put on your big boy pants and develop a platform people want. Give up the doomed attempt to get Apple to cram your flaws into iOS.
    Android are using an industry standard that all carriers use.  It's Apple that are being proprietary, refuse to provide access to the iMessage platform and are refusing to adopt the current industry standard in messaging. 
  • Reply 19 of 35
    danoxdanox Posts: 2,804member
    i-john said:
    JP234 said:
    Note to Android: Put on your big boy pants and develop a platform people want. Give up the doomed attempt to get Apple to cram your flaws into iOS.
    Android are using an industry standard that all carriers use.  It's Apple that are being proprietary, refuse to provide access to the iMessage platform and are refusing to adopt the current industry standard in messaging. 
    RCS is another Google info vacuum sucking up users private bits.
    edited August 2022 baconstangBart Ywatto_cobra
  • Reply 20 of 35
    payecopayeco Posts: 580member
    newtonrj said:
    Why not see Apple release iMessage as an Android app?  It would leave SMS/MMS to Android users, bring blue-bubble to both sides of the user views and give true E2EE for all users.  Secure and assured delivery.  The answer to me is that iMessage is a product lock-in for the iOS ecosystem.  But counterpoint, so was Apple-Music which is now available in Android.  -RJ
    Apple Music was always available for Android. Don’t forget that Apple Music evolved from Beats’ streaming service, which Apple acquired along with the hardware division. 
    watto_cobra
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