Apple Antitrust: US DOJ Puts a Spotlight on iMessage’s Green Bubbles, Lack of RCS

The Apple antitrust case saw another massive complaint from the US DOJ which centered on its iMessage service, particularly for the "green bubbles" that user gets when they are not sending or receiving from another iPhone.

This latest complaint against Apple centered on the iPhone's monopoly, with iMessage known for facing massive scrutiny with the exclusivity of its service for its users only.

It is known that Apple is on its way to adopting the RCS feature, but has not yet released any technology that will substantiate its claim that will open up the messaging service.

Apple Antitrust: US DOJ Spotlights iMessage's Green Bubbles

The landmark antitrust case of Apple from the US DOJ saw another significant complaint against them from Attorney General Merrick B. Garland, who dragged iMessage for its use of SMS and MMS.

In his speech, he dedicated a chunk to iMessage and Apple's reluctance to adopt RCS, with users still receiving green bubbles if they are conversing with an Android user.

And, as any iPhone user who has ever seen a green text message, or received a tiny, grainy video can attest - Apple's anticompetitive conduct also includes making it more difficult for iPhone users to message with users of non-Apple products.

Merrick B. Garland

The attorney general claimed that whenever users see the green bubble, it only shows that the text is not encrypted, videos sent through MMS are pixelated and grainy, and there are no ways to edit the sent message or see when others are typing.

Apple's RCS: The iPhone Monopoly Complaints

Garland went as far as to say that the iPhone community perceives rival smartphones to have "lower quality" because they do not own the Apple smartphone, hence the alleged monopoly.

That being said, Apple already expressed its plans to adopt RCS late last year and is looking to collaborate with the GSM Association for this development for iMessage.

Apple, iMessage, and the RCS

For many years, Google has been one of Apple's most vocal critics, with its decision to stay with SMS and MMS for the iPhone instead of the renowned universal messaging service it designed, the RCS.

Google has run shady campaigns, including the 'iPager,' which claimed that Apple is stuck on old technology for iMessage and is reluctant to adopt the RCS.

Earlier, Apple again faced another callout from Google regarding its iMessage, particularly the green bubbles that iPhone users receive when they are sent from Android.

This centered on Drake's 2022 song, Texts Go Green, from the Honestly, Nevermind album with Google getting creative with pushing Apple to adopt RCS despite the song not mentioning anything about it.

Before 2023 ended, Apple announced that it would soon adopt RCS for the iMessage in the future, but did not exactly talk about when this integration will take place.

That being said, Apple is yet again facing another antitrust case for its iPhone's monopoly, centering on the App Store, but this recent statement from the attorney general drags the iMessage for its preference of the SMS.