Considering how many people are already on Facebook, how does this help Facebook? I'd guess almost all of this apps users also use Facebook, and if they don't it's probably because they hate Facebook, and won't be as likely to continue using the app.
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Facebook Buying Messaging App WhatsApp for $16 Billion
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Considering how many people are already on Facebook, how does this help Facebook? I'd guess almost all of this apps users also use Facebook, and if they don't it's probably because they hate Facebook, and won't be as likely to continue using the app.
Actually the problem is, no you can't
As much as we think programmers/business people are somewhat commodity-like, just throwing money and programmers at a project doesn't produce good results. If it did, we'd all be drooling over Windows 8/8.1.
I thought the valuation on Instagram at a billion was insane. Then Google wants Nest, a thermostat maker, for heaven's sake, for 3 billion. 16 billion is whack on the face of it, but if that's what it takes to give FB the connectivity it wants in texts - something far better than FB Messenger - then so be it. I'm pretty confident that it will look like a good investment 5-10 years from now. Instagram is already wildly successful, and it's barely monetized.
As much as we think programmers/business people are somewhat commodity-like, just throwing money and programmers at a project doesn't produce good results. If it did, we'd all be drooling over Windows 8/8.1.
I thought the valuation on Instagram at a billion was insane. Then Google wants Nest, a thermostat maker, for heaven's sake, for 3 billion. 16 billion is whack on the face of it, but if that's what it takes to give FB the connectivity it wants in texts - something far better than FB Messenger - then so be it. I'm pretty confident that it will look like a good investment 5-10 years from now. Instagram is already wildly successful, and it's barely monetized.
Do ads really bring in that much money? I just have a hard time seeing how something that only generates income from advertising can be worth that much.
It's that it's hard to try and get someone to download an app when I already have a means of communicating with them.
"Hey, download this!"
"What is it?"
"It's like texting!"
"But you can already text me."
"Yeah, but..."
Facebook! Listen up! This is what people want: Whatsapp web-based version. We'll be able to use it on our phone, on our PC or on our Mac. Faster typing for while you're at work or at home.
Kind of like the iMessage for Mac, but web-based.
Technically you can connect a BT keyboard to your phone if you just want to type faster.
Whatsapp is too entrenched here in Hong Kong. It has nearly 100% penetration. It has nearly taken over the global SMS volume. It has very very low market share in China (and unlikely to get any ground there because the market is already dominated by WeChat). So I think it has probably peaked and so Whatsapp is extremely smart to sell out at this point. Mark Zuckerberg has become the Zynga of social networking.
I just tried Telegram, and updated my FB and whatsapp statuses to say that from now on I'd only answer to Telegram messages. Five minutes later, my closest message buddies were online*. By tomorrow evening, I estimate 90% of the contacts I usually talk to will be on Telegram.
*Oh, and they all liked it better than Whatsapp. It feels snappier, and brings some useful features for group chats.
I'm failing to see how people think that iMessage is anywhere to close to dedicated IM's. I get that people prefer iMessage because all their friends are all on iOS/OS X or they don't need anything than simple messaging but that does not change the fact that when compared to other IM's, iMessage is not even close and it's even laughable that people are really taking a hard stand that iMessage is up there.
Can iMessage be great? Absolutely because Apple has iChat/FaceTime and a great platform to combine. But iMessage in it's current state, it really is nothing more than SMS with blue bubbles.
What I also find amusing is that when BBM finally came to iOS and Android, everyone was laughing and saying it won't be successful because no one is using it or everyone is on Whatsapp. But now, they're willing to jump and try even lesser IM's with even less users. Nothing against them, use what you want but I laugh when I remember all those BS responses. People are really brand whores.
Can iMessage be great? Absolutely because Apple has iChat/FaceTime and a great platform to combine. But iMessage in it's current state, it really is nothing more than SMS with blue bubbles.
What I also find amusing is that when BBM finally came to iOS and Android, everyone was laughing and saying it won't be successful because no one is using it or everyone is on Whatsapp. But now, they're willing to jump and try even lesser IM's with even less users. Nothing against them, use what you want but I laugh when I remember all those BS responses. People are really brand whores.
I guess its more meaningful for people with friends and family in other countries or for group chatting
you can do what most apps do with some sort of native built in app but we still download apps to get a different look, feel or experience
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instant access to all existing users data, easier than starting over
iMessage is nowhere near Whatsapp because:
1) it's not cross platform. There are a lot (yes, a lot) of people using Android and none of them can use it.
2) it's slow even for a text message (text!), you can see the progress bar on top using over 1 sec.
3) it's even slower for pictures since it always send the full (or nearly full) resolution, as opposed to other messengers which compress the image before sending
4) it's a storage hog - you don't have any means to delete old pictures hiding in the messages app and it can waste GBs of your phone's storage and backup files over the years.
5) it's not that convenient because you don't always know who is using iMessage and who is not. It makes a big difference since SMS is not free at least in my market (Hong Kong).
6) it's very hard (or simply not possible) to share anything other than text or image, e.g. location, voice, contacts, etc.
Dropbox? What's the point of that? On AIM you can just send files directly. And they had audio and video chat since like 2005. BBM seriously JUST got that?!?
I didn't hear about Whatsapp until I went on MacRumors. Must be a Europe thing because every single person I know here in the US uses iMessage, FB chat, AIM, SMS, and rarely Google chat. And all of those except SMS work in Messages (aka iChat)
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One area where whatsapp is no match for iMessage is the ability to work / sync across phones, tablets, and computers. Whatsapp only works on phones which is pretty inconvenient because when I'm at work it's much easier to type on the computer and when I'm at home I like to use the ipad.
That sounds horrible. Yeah, I don't understand why such a piece of crap became popular. No PC support is a big problem.
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I'm not so worried about Facebook taking my information (lol what information?), but now that they have partnered with Microsoft and have given Bing access to all of our accounts, I'm just afraid that I'll get hacked into or spammed somehow. Microsoft is the last company I'd trust with any sensitive data.
While some may see that is a positive, I know many people who dislike it. The people I know who disable or limit which accounts can be used is simply for the fact that it's annoying when you're on your computer using iMessage but your phone still receives the message because the iCloud server doesn't sync fast enough.