Apple Explains Why iMessage Hasn't Expanded to Android

[zhenya]

Did you read original post? See, all companies use user data for analytical purposes, the difference is when apple says they don't collect data about you....it actually means they collect data, but it's not associated to you as an individual, very important point for markerting purposes. Some people believe that means apple does not collect user data....naive. Everytime you visit thier site, product pages etc, you are a statistic , just cause apple is not associating it to joe blow does not mean it's not collecting data.

As you have an appleid, think how much user data is collected on you just from from using the AppStore and iTunes

In this case apple is collecting all the data from our use of iMessage, we are just ids in the system, now cross reference an appleid used in iMessage to where personal info is stored, run a few SQL, boom, apple can show who you have messaged, who has messaged you , when , where ......user data, but hey they said they don't store any right...

Where we work, we don't collect user data either.....but we know everyone that has visited our sites from all around the world, and the reason we can brag that we do not collect data about you, is cause you are an ID , not associated to an actual person . Replace the analytics Id with John smith, and bam....we know everything about your behaviour on our sites, we can even predict when our users have lunchtimes....browsing behaviours etc, or as per example you replied to, when someone got pregnant.
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Same here. Not cause it's the best, but cause it's cross platform, and was easier for everyone to jump on board.

Recently we have been using slack

Avoiding this is the entire point of the differential privacy they talked about at WWDC.

 

[8692574]

Unfortunately, like all things at Apple. Everything is about money.

Unfortunately, like all things in business, everything is about money.

There fixed that for you!

 

[Ramchi]

I can't use iMessage at all because most of my friends rely on WhatsApp

Absolutely, these sort of stands give rise to WhatsApp sort of platforms. Apple had done a great service to mankind ;-)

 

[SactoGuy18]

In the end, regardless of brand of phone you have, to communicate with people around the world using messaging apps requires the following apps be installed:

1. Facebook Messenger (primarily North America)
2. LINE (primarily eastern Asia)
3. WhatsApp (much of the rest of the world, especially South America and Africa)
4. WeChat (primarily China)

Pity that everyone is running away from the XMPP protocol, which could have resulted in all messaging services--including possibly iMessage--being able to communicate with each other.

 

[s2mikey]

In the end, regardless of brand of phone you have, to communicate with people around the world using messaging apps requires the following apps be installed:

1. Facebook Messenger (primarily North America)
2. LINE (primarily eastern Asia)
3. WhatsApp (much of the rest of the world, especially South America and Africa)
4. WeChat (primarily China)

Pity that everyone is running away from the XMPP protocol, which could have resulted in all messaging services--including possibly iMessage--being able to communicate with each other.

Agreed - this proprietary messaging stuff for such a basic/fundamental usage scenario is baffling. Its stupid. I dont blame just Apple but geesh, they couild at least let iMessage talk to other platforms. Or something like that.

 

[SactoGuy18]

Agreed - this proprietary messaging stuff for such a basic/fundamental usage scenario is baffling. Its stupid. I dont blame just Apple but geesh, they couild at least let iMessage talk to other platforms. Or something like that.

It also hogs storage space on your cellphone if you have to install multiple messaging clients. My phone only has Facebook Messenger installed, though I may install WhatsApp so my stepdad could communicate with his relatives in Hong Kong (many cellphone users in Hong Kong use WhatsApp).

 

[trevor12]

13% marketshare platform can not dictate 87% platform what users will use as messaging app...

 

[MH01]

Avoiding this is the entire point of the differential privacy they talked about at WWDC.

It's not even going that far, it's what a company defines as user data from what they collect. Of everything they collect, they only consider a subset to be "personal" data, the rest of fair game for them, as they can mine it without it being directly associated to an individual, as per iMessage here.

Differential privacy will address the subset that is personal data.

The question you have to ask yourself, by coming to say macrumors, and with using the site, everything about your behaviour is captured, including ads....do you consider that to be personal data that is being collected about you and your behaviour ? Even If your name is not against iD X , but you are id X ....data mining and analytics is a fine line between anonymous these days and tracked...

 

[840quadra]

13% marketshare platform can not dictate 87% platform what users will use as messaging app...

I wouldn't say they dictate, but iMessage does tempt.

YMMV but I am amazed at how many people have moved to iOS simply because their friends have iMessage, and they do not. It is a strong selling point for some social groups.

I actually miss it whenever I have to communicate with work on my Android phones, and, I actually do like both platforms.

 

[2457282]

I can't use iMessage at all because most of my friends rely on WhatsApp

I see that you have already gotten a few "smart" responses. But I have to tell you that I have converted everyone to Apple and iMessage. I converted my wife, daughters, parents, siblings. My brother who was a hold out converted to the 6+. At work, I have converted quite a few. And right now I only have one friend that so far has resisted. I have whatsapp but really never use it because it's so much easier to use iMessage. In my corner of the world, I have been lucky enough to have enough influence to get all my connection onto iMessage. I am still working on that one friend and hope to have her converted with the next release.

 

[MH01]

I see that you have already gotten a few "smart" responses. But I have to tell you that I have converted everyone to Apple and iMessage. I converted my wife, daughters, parents, siblings. My brother who was a hold out converted to the 6+. At work, I have converted quite a few. And right now I only have one friend that so far has resisted. I have whatsapp but really never use it because it's so much easier to use iMessage. In my corner of the world, I have been lucky enough to have enough influence to get all my connection onto iMessage. I am still working on that one friend and hope to have her converted with the next release.

Sounds like a religion

 

[0007776]

That makes sense, wasn't opening up BBM outside of blackberry devices one of the last nails in blackberry's coffin?

 

[Tech198]

Apple is only taking about 1 billion of them being in the U.S... That's why. like any other...

When u factor that into account, it is gonna be smaller number.. but to Apple the extra pile on Android devices users outside simply won't be worth it

 

[2457282]

Sounds like a religion

Not really, I just don't like green bubbles.

Arg, that a green emoji.....

 

[Zaft]

for me friends/family there are literally only a couple people on android.
We use facebook messenger if we all want to share pics or what not.

But 90% of the time its imessage. But apple has changed its stance before, lets see what happens in a year.

 

[empire01]

i have literally one person using iMessage, everyone else is using WhatsApp and i hate it.

I tried to force people to reply to me on iMessage but they are always like ooooops i didnt see ur msg cuz "that app" is hidden on page xy of my iPhone.

however i have to say sending pictures through iMessage is a pain in the ass, so slow compared to WhatsApp and also data hungry cuz it sends the HQ thing

Most of my friends, family have a mixture of android and iPhones so WhatsApp is the only way to go. If Apple aren't careful they'll go the way of Blackberry on the messaging front.

 

[ChrisCW11]

Because there are dozens of better messengers on Android already? Including Google's own Hangouts.

Small fish in a big pond is what Apple is to Android's ecosystem. Better for Apple to keep their small fish in their own small pond and think they are sharks.

 

[trevor12]

game is over, apple has money, android has users and marketshare

 

[samcraig]

Perhaps Apple collects user data for their own uses... but they don't sell it to 3rd-parties for advertising purposes.

Thoughts?

Google (who I might be incorrectly assuming you are making a comparison to) doesn't sell data either.

 

[I7guy]

Because there are dozens of better messengers on Android already? Including Google's own Hangouts.

Small fish in a big pond is what Apple is to Android's ecosystem. Better for Apple to keep their small fish in their own small pond and think they are sharks.

Hangouts is only better if that's your only alternative, IMO.
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Because there are dozens of better messengers on Android already? Including Google's own Hangouts.

Small fish in a big pond is what Apple is to Android's ecosystem. Better for Apple to keep their small fish in their own small pond and think they are sharks.

It's more akin to a huge shark in a big pond. In this case being the same; i.e. iMessage is powerful.

 

[MacBergin]

I can't use iMessage at all because most of my friends rely on WhatsApp

WhatsApp...I deleted that mess. its full of spam just like Kik
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Hangouts is only better if that's your only alternative, IMO.
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It's more akin to a huge shark in a big pond. In this case being the same; i.e. iMessage is powerful.

Yeah I don't want to play in the Android pond...shhhhh...its actually a swamp. i get zero spam on imessage.

 

[cdcastillo]

I know it is petty of me, but being only for iOS/macOS devices, it kind of gives me a feeling of "exclusivity/elite". My acquaintances also use WhatsApp, I do not, so they have to "work harder" to get in touch with me.

Petty, I know, but that's how I see it.

 

[ineedamac]

That makes sense, wasn't opening up BBM outside of blackberry devices one of the last nails in blackberry's coffin?

Friends that had a Blackberry really touted BBM. They loved it and would not switch to another device because they did not want to lose BBM.

 

[alex2792]

It's sad (and telling) that we've reached the point where iMessage is considered one of the iPhones biggest advantages. It used to be the iPhone was clearly superior hardware and great software features were just a bonus. I remember the days where we happily accepted no MMS or landscape keyboards because Apple said we didn't need them...but the device was so much better than anything else that we didn't care.

That's the way the market works, see product life cycle theory. Right now the smartphone market is in the late stages of maturity heading towards the decline stage.

 

[I7guy]

Friends that had a Blackberry really touted BBM. They loved it and would not switch to another device because they did not want to lose BBM.

Bbm was great, but the rim hardware...not so much. Back then though I was still 75/25 sms/bbm. Not the case with Apple, hardware and software are top notch.