Apple was allegedly planning to announce the arrival of iMessage for Android at this year's WWDC 2016 according to a previous report.
However, as the company presented its latest innovations and updates on various Apple products, such as the much-awaited iOS 10, macOS Sierra, and Siri's arrival on the Mac desktop, there was no statement regarding making iMessage available to Android users.
In fact, most reports highlight how the updates were more internal and fairly exclusive to Apple devices only. It seems like none of the apps and products from Apple's chain will be joining its music streaming service on the Android platform.
News regarding iMessage updates centered around various new features that included the ability to customize the way message bubbles look, animated ink in the user's own handwriting, hidden messages that need to be swiped before getting viewed, various theme-like personalization for messages, replacing words with emojis, drawing over videos, and sending songs directly from Apple Music.
These upcoming features do make the iMessage more appealing as most default messaging apps on Android phones only feature the standard functions. There was, however, no news about the alleged iMessage for Android, thus, proving the rumors false.
In a report by Walt Mossberg, executive editor of The Verge, an Apple senior executive also confirmed that there was no apparent plan to port the app on the Android platform. When further asked why Apple was not making the move, the Apple rep only gave out two reasons:
First, Apple already has an existing pool of about 1 billion Apple device users. This should be more than enough to act as a good source of information in cases where the company requires real-world data in the artificial intelligence implementation. Presumably, an expansion onto different platforms will only happen if one day, for example, Apple needs more data to implement new features for its devices. Until then, the company is happy with its numbers.
The second reason is the sole purpose of exclusivity itself. Apple's decision to keep the iMessage within its borders ensures that Apple users will continue to support the company's devices while at the same time, attract non-Apple users over, as seen in the recent updates it is rolling out for its messaging platform. This should secure Apple's foothold in the industry through the coming years.
"This is different from Google or Facebook or Microsoft, whose messaging and other key apps — including their voice-controlled AI assistants — work on competing devices," Mossberg writes, adding that, "Apple is all-in on Apple hardware and still wants you to be all-in, too."
Photo: William Hook | Flickr
