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Improved cross–platform messaging coming in 2024

Want to bring along your Android friends? Apple reveals it will finally support cross–platform messaging

APPLE HAS ANNOUNCED that it will support RCS messaging later in 2024. RCS (Rich Communication Services) is a protocol used on Android devices, and Google has been campaigning for Apple to support it to improve the cross–platform messaging experience for both iOS and Android users.

When you message another iPhone user using iMessage on an iPhone, you get advanced features such as read receipts, group chat, emoji reactions, end–to–end encryption, and an indication when the other party is typing a response. At present, if the other party has an Android device, you get none of these, because messages are sent using the legacy SMS texting protocol, or MMS if they contain any kind of media — and even then the images or video are scaled–down.

The SMS standard, introduced back in 1992, uses the cellular network only and does not support any of these advanced messaging features. It also does not handle media content, so messages with images, video, or audio are sent via MMS, on which carriers also impose limits (which differ from carrier to carrier) to protect their cellular bandwidth.

RCS, introduced in 2016, was developed by the GSM Association, which represents mobile networks, although according to one estimate only about 20% of Android users have access to RCS. There are also different implementations of RCS — AT&T, for example, uses its own — so users with the same phone but different carriers could have different versions of RCS with slightly different features.

Apple has said it “will be adding support for RCS Universal Profile, the standard as currently published by the GSM Association.” This is not exactly the same as Google’s implementation of RCS — notably, encryption is not currently part of the standard and is available only in Google Messages, and only for one–on–one conversations, not group chats.

Apple has said it will work with the GSMA to add encryption and other features to the standard. Even so, it’s clear that RCS won’t replace iMessage: Apple said RCS “will work alongside iMessage, which will continue to be the best and most secure messaging experience for Apple users.”

Even if RCS is updated, iMessage will still have the edge with features such as Memoji, stickers, and the ability to edit and unsend messages, not to mention tougher encryption. Apple also hasn’t said anything about ending the perceived stigma of different color speech balloons. Plus, even after RCS support arrives, SMS/ MMS will still be needed as a fallback where there’s no internet connection, which RCS requires.

If you want smooth cross–platform messaging right now, you already have plenty of options outside of RCS, such as Signal, WhatsApp, Telegram, or Facebook. So why is Apple taking this step? Just a year ago, Tim Cook dismissed Google’s campaign, saying Apple perceived no demand from iOS users to add RCS support.

The key may be a forthcoming law in Europe, the Digital Markets Act, which might ultimately require Apple to open up “gatekeeper services” including iMessage and the App Store. Apple has filed a legal challenge against the DMA’s demand for third– party stores, and adding support for RCS might simply be an alternative tactic to head off future regulatory hassle over proprietary messaging.