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Google Exec Pushing RCS Adoption Says He's 'Not Asking Apple to Make iMessage Available on Android'

heov said:
This thread will blow up, and a lot of ingorance is already posted. Here are some facts:

-RCS is not owned by Google. It's very much like SMS. There are various RCS profiles that can be used. Some talk to one another, some do not. Some are E2E encrypted, some are not. Apple can certainly use whichever profile they want.

-Yes, RCS can be E2E encrypted. It doesn't have to be, though. Apple can choose to use a profile that is.

-RCS is to replace SMS, not iMessage. There are many iMessage-only features that cannot be duplicated by RCS. RCS will likely still be Green bubbled.

-Again, RCS is a modern SMS. It's not designed to replace WhatsApp, WeChat, iMessage, etc.

The argument most are making is Apple is refusing to support RCS because those Green bubbles will not not suck as much.. you'll get delivery and read receipts, see typing, have high quality images, etc. So an iPhone users won't bully Green bubble people as much. The argument is this is bad for Apple business, because if Green bubbles are less bullied, maybe people will switch.

whether or not this will stop green bubble bullying, who knows. Even if it doesn't, one has to ask... why won't Apple support this standard protocol, then? What are the downsides to RCS over SMS (and to be clear, of RCS fails, it'll fall back to SMS still)?
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Someone with sense/knowledge. Thank you. The amount of ignorance found in the first 37 posts is absurd.

Everyone would benefit from RCS integration, including Apple people. I'd like to be able to send my green bubble friends a picture that isn't compressed into oblivion and/or look like it was taken with a potato. (or have to move to a different app/system to accomplish said things)
 
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MauiPa said:
Or google supporting iMessage would be better. Always amazes me when someone says the other guy should reprogram their system to meet these new “standards” that were developed afterwards
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Google cannot support iMessage unless Apple opens the protocol.. If Apple did that, I bet Google would support it ASAP. Apple won't even release an iMessage app for Android, let alone open it up, though..

Also, nobody is asking Apple to drop iMessage, they're just asking Apple to add RCS.
 
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I’m just asking Apple to tone down the GD green of non-iPhone text messages. Why does Apple feel the need to punish me for the purchasing decisions of others?
 
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Cosmosent said:
And why would Apple do this ?

I'm NOT a fan of Tim Cook's Apple, but in this case, I think they are in the right.
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If Apple really cares about security like they say they do they would adopt RCS which is now encrypted and dump SMS/MMS which is not encrypted. Apple moving to RCS would finally get everyone on a modern secure texting standard. I don't care if the RCS messages make the bubble color different. iPhone and Android users would both benefit not only in improved texting features and quality, but better security across platforms.
 
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Unregistered 4U said:
From what I understand (not a user, but the discussion comes up at times), there are governments outside the US that have defined WhatsApp as somewhat as a formal requirement for official electronic communication, payments, etc. There’s little way for folks in those countries to NOT use WhatsApp and take part in their country’s electronic commerce. Also, most of this happened prior to FaceBook buying WhatsApp, but it’s not likely those countries will ever extricate themselves from their WhatsApp dependence.

So, yeah, there are masses of folks for which iMessage isn’t considered even if both folks own iPhones!
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Yeah, that's not a good thing at all. Governments requiring what is essentially a spyware messing app is the exact wrong direction they should be going.
 
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PygmySurfer said:
RCS messages are currently 1:1 encrypted, so Google presumably isn't using it to harvest data on users.

I think the benefits are interoperability between iOS and Android users, specifically:

- end to end encryption
- reactions
- no more broken group chats

The current situation is sub-optimal for EVERYONE. Apple supporting RCS would make life better for everyone.
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Someone else said that RCS has many profiles, so I’m assuming that there’s a profile that does not require 1:1 encryption. Is there an understanding of which profile Google’s putting forth here?

I can understand how those used to iMessage and WhatsApp would see group chatting as “broken”, but that’s just what they always were and they still are that. They’re not broken so much as “not as cool”. Google wants Apple to adopt RCS because chats between SMS and iMessages would look “cooler”.
 
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PygmySurfer said:
Citation needed to show that Google can and does track RCS users.
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Google tracks all users. Academic research study published maybe 3 years ago found Android phones report back to Google over 100 times per hour even when sitting face down and untouched. Google tracks users more than the public has any idea.
 
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erikkfi said:
I don't even care about the SMS bubble being green but at least make it WCAG compliant for accessibility, Apple. The difference between the particular green they've chosen and the white font is atrocious.
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There's an "Increase Color Contrast" option in the settings for that.
 
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Make no mistake...Apple's number one goal is to make money. They think through all strategies around their products and services, as it relates to improving their bottom line. You don't become a 3 trillion dollar company by accident...it's their mission.
 
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Treq said:
Yeah, that's not a good thing at all. Governments requiring what is essentially a spyware messing app is the exact wrong direction they should be going.
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OH, and another thing, some carriers in non-US countries charge exorbitant amounts for regular SMS messages (no unlimited txt plans like in the US). So, for them, going to WhatsApp was just a means to have a cheaper phone bill. They may not even use it for anything else, but they’re not going to go to iMessage where there’s a likelihood they’d be charged.
 
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The Cappy said:
“…secure 1:1 messages (groups coming soon)…”

Seriously?? You don't even have secure groups messaging and you're whining that Apple hasn't jumped on your beta bandwagon??
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Currently it is 1:1 encrypted and groups are coming soon. I'd say that's already a lot better then SMS. RCS is not a beta protocol. It's development started years ago. It has just taken forever to get carriers to move past SMS/MMS. Apple taking the jump would send SMS to the dump right along with Flash Player.
 
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Is it just me or isn’t the issue kids bullying. Parents should be taking a more active role and stopping the bullying. What’s next, Rolls Royce you need to make you cars cheaper because my kid is being bullied about driving a Honda to school?

Seriously?!
 
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If RCS is a "standard", why should Apple need someone to "work with" them to implement ? Note the last paragraph in the History section of the Wikipedia article on RCS Messaging. It seems the carriers are punting their apps. Also regarding "end to end encryption", an important consideration is who holds the keys.
 
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Viale Montanane said:
If RCS is a "standard", why should Apple need someone to "work with" them to implement ? Note the last paragraph in the History section of the Wikipedia article on RCS Messaging. It seems the carriers are punting their apps.
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Thanks for the heads up, guess I’ll take a wee look.
 
7thson said:
Apple could adopt RCS in exchange for carriers acceptance of iCloud private relay. Pipe dreaming but I like to look for solutions.
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In the US, the carriers will be pressured into allowing private relay anyway bc of Net Neutrality as well as people knowing their privacy is being invaded by carriers...
 
What is iMessage ? I thought it was just SMS
i never used it as i have always owned an Android & other mobile phones.
 
Unregistered 4U said:
Someone else said that RCS has many profiles, so I’m assuming that there’s a profile that does not require 1:1 encryption. Is there an understanding of which profile Google’s putting forth here?

I can understand how those used to iMessage and WhatsApp would see group chatting as “broken”, but that’s just what they always were and they still are that. They’re not broken so much as “not as cool”. Google wants Apple to adopt RCS because chats between SMS and iMessages would look “cooler”.
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Google is using RCS Universal Profile, most other RCS implementations do as well.

No, group chats between iOS and Android are broken, just search for "iOS Android group message". Sometimes messages send to all users individually instead of in one chat with all members, sometimes people get dropped and have to be re-invited. There's no "cool" vs "not as cool" - it's broken.

Google actually fixed an issue where iOS reactions would show up as text. For example, if an iOS user "Liked" a message, it'd send the Android user the text "Liked an image", now Android users get the Thumbs up emoji instead.
 
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RONS67 said:
Google tracks all users. Academic research study published maybe 3 years ago found Android phones report back to Google over 100 times per hour even when sitting face down and untouched. Google tracks users more than the public has any idea.
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I didn't say Google doesn't track users, I said show me how Google tracks RCS users. It's possible they do (being Google it wouldn't even surprise me), however, there's no indication that Google can track RCS users, especially not if Apple were to deploy their own RCS infrastructure.
 
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