An Apple executive claimed that the company never released iMessage on Android as that might have stifled innovation, but how valid is that claim?
Apple‘s Craig Federighi has claimed that the company never released iMessage on Android as that might have stifled innovation. Apple’s iPhones have consistently ranked as the most popular smartphones in the U.S. Data released earlier this year by analyst firm Piper Sandler even suggested that 87 percent of all teens in the country use iPhones instead of Androids. So what makes people opt for expensive iPhones when they can get similar functionality from cheaper Android devices? Surveys suggest that the iOS ecosystem, including iMessage, is one of the biggest reasons people continue to prefer Apple’s smartphones.
However, unbeknownst to most smartphone users, they can use iMessage on Android, Windows and Linux. While Apple doesn’t have an official iMessage app on Android, there are a few ways to run iMessage on non-Apple operating systems. One app that helps run iMessage on non-Apple devices is BlueBubbles, which lets users run iMessage on any web browser, irrespective of the operating system. It does so by using a macOS server to forward iMessages to and from non-Apple devices. The method is compatible with messages, including text, images and videos. It also lets users join groups on iMessage and react to messages like regular Apple users.
Speaking about the lack of an iMessage app on Android, Apple’s Federighi told The Wall Street Journal that releasing iMessage on Android would have “held us back in innovating in all the ways we want to innovate in messages for our customers and wouldn’t have accomplished much at all in any other way.” He also claimed that everything Apple does “makes a difference,” but releasing an iMessage app on Android would not have extended that Apple philosophy. However, Despite Federighi’s contention that an iMessage app on Android would have stifled innovation, it is widely believed that not releasing an iMessage app on Android is more of a business decision for Apple than anything else.
No iMessage App On Android
Federighi had earlier expressed apprehension that releasing iMessage on Android would simply reduce iPhone sales. For example, in a leaked email from 2013, Federighi said: “I’m concerned iMessage on Android would simply serve to remove [an] obstacle to iPhone families giving their kids Android phones.”
When asked about that infamous email during the interview, Federighi laughed it off, saying, “I’m not aware of it shipping.” He also added that iMessage on Android would have been like a “throwaway” that “was not going to serve the world.” However, while Federighi is arguing that a cross-platform iMessage app would not have helped the world, a court filing last year revealed that Apple did not create an iMessage app for Android as it did not want people to leave the iPhone.
Source: WSJ/Twitter
