Department of Justice and FTC Looking Into Beeper iMessage Controversy

[scorpio vega]

Every time you are writing you are being as anti-Apple and I will never understand why.
All us Apple users is security and if you are against that your Chinese society score just went up.

….what?

 

[MacTiki]

Absolutely, and I think they should release it as a subscription service for Android and Windows, and I think they'd make a killing on it.

It won’t be long before every Apple service and app running on iOS or macOS will require paid a la-carte subscriptions.

 

[Biro]

Teenagers voice their disprove loud and they echo each other. Yes, any given adult can choose to not care, but society itself can’t.

Of course it can. It’s all part of the harsh reality of growing up.

 

[Radon87000]

Galaxy S23 Ultra user chiming in. Couldn't care less about this fiasco. If someone is concerned about me breaking group chats and being a green bubble, maybe it's someone I don't want to talk with anyway.

The S23 Ultra is the far superior phone for me personally and I am not about to let a messaging app get in the way

 

[Radon87000]

Absolutely, and I think they should release it as a subscription service for Android and Windows, and I think they'd make a killing on it.

But trying to backdoor and piggyback on Apple's services free of charge or authorization, and they tried to charge a subscription themselves - is beyond stupid.

Um, iMessage is basically irrelevant outside the US.

 

[hagjohn]

Apple acts like a grade-school bully. In the end, I think Apple’s anticompetitive behavior will end up leading to parts of it being broken up. Remember when Microsoft was split up over browser influence? Companies have been allowed to grow into these giant anticompetitive forces now that destroy all competition, steal IP and even steal from its own developers! Really want Apple to be investigated and things to change.

It would be better for all of us. I love a lot of Apple things, but I hate the ecosystem that acts like a monopoly. And the vertical integration of the entire pipeline looks like a monopoly.

My perfect iPhone would be a Galaxy Ultra operating on an A17 Pro with iOS running.

My perfect computer would be an iPad running MacOS or a Thinkpad running MacOS. I don’t think companies should be forced to sell other companies products but I do think the vast size of Apple is good for nobody except maybe Tim and the top 1% of shareholders.

If Apple was split into six or seven companies, they would all be better. And interoperability would be a feature among all devices. Instead of a walled garden approach. It’s sticky as investors say, but it’s also anticompetitive. Investors will keep investing in these companies with monopolistic practices until someone puts an end to it. Build it all in America and then it at least builds up our economy. But there is just no advantage right now to allowing one company to control so much.

Can Apple users communicate with Android users via the message app? Yes, they can and with RCS support coming, there is no need to expand it further.

 

[hagjohn]

Tim Apple needs to have his Android team publish an official iMessages app for that platform. Restricting people who used Android phones from being able to communicate is a form of discrimination.

Apple devices can communicate with Androids. What you said was a complete lie.

 

[Shirasaki]

Of course it can. It’s all part of the harsh reality of growing up.

Then you don’t seem to remember how hard it is to change certain things once you grow up. This induces the understanding of the world and society during youth.

 

[maxoakland]

I don't believe in governments forcing companies to be customer friendly or make interoperable systems or making it easier to switch.

Well, that's a terrible way to think about things and the end result of your ideas is a world where things are worse for customers and consumers. That's not the way I want things to be

 

[HiVolt]

Um, iMessage is basically irrelevant outside the US.

So what, it's relevant in the US, Apple's home turf and a 50% marketshare.

 

[SoldOnApple]

Google should have paid Apple two billion dollars a year to make an iMessage app for Android. Would have been worth it..

 

[DakotaGuy]

Can Apple users communicate with Android users via the message app? Yes, they can and with RCS support coming, there is no need to expand it further.

I agree. RCS fixes the issue of the limited functionality of current SMS/MMS support only. As an Android user I’d prefer to just use Google Messages for texting. Apple is working on integrating and supporting RCS. The only thing it doesn’t change is bubble color. The bubble color won’t matter for 95% of users if blue or green gives the same type of functionality. For the 5% of users who think an iPhone is some sort of status symbol they have issues that no bubble color will ever fix.

If Apple had any plans to make an iMessage app for Android they wouldn‘t be putting time and resources into RCS.

 

[MacGizmo]

Tim Apple needs to have his Android team publish an official iMessages app for that platform. Restricting people who used Android phones from being able to communicate is a form of discrimination.

What the heck are you going on about? You act like Android users can't send a text message to an iPhone user. The government has somehow been convinced that at its core, iMessage is something completely different than run-of-the-mill text messaging.

Any talk of E2EE is hogwash because encryption is a personal choice... one that I suspect 95% of smartphone users couldn't care less about.

We're talking about colored bubbles here. That's all this is about in the end.

 

[MacGizmo]

For the 5% of users who think an iPhone is some sort of status symbol they have issues that no bubble color will ever fix.

Amen, brother. I love Apple products, but I just consider it a tool that I prefer to use. I really don't care if Android phones have this feature or that and I don't... particularly if I don't need the feature.

People couldn't care less what kind of car you or I drive, where we live or how big our house is, what brand of coffee we drink, what brand of shoes we wear... but oh my God do they seem to care what kind of frigging phone we have. I'll never understand people's obsession with keeping up with the Jones'.

 

[RigSatMe]

For those who are on the side of Apple and wants to keep iMessage on their iPhones... need to understand that allowing iMessage on Android benefits you (shocker!).

You won't have to be concerned about "oh, they have an Android... I don't care to message them." Look at the data from teenagers and especially in the dating world. It removes that barrier. And I know you might be wondering... well, there's plenty of other messaging platforms to exchange messages with for Android users.

But the issue is that most iPhone users IN THE US... gravitate toward iMessage. If we (in the states) can agree to move to a cross-platform messaging app... this whole situation would be mute.

Don’t like iMessages, use alternative. Why should iMessages user care about what android user experiences? Why should Apple care about sharing iMessages to Android?

 

[ozaz]

Although I have an iMac and an iPad I also have a Galaxy S22 Ultra for a phone. I suppose for teens bubble color is really important, but all I want is a better stock messaging experience when I text iPhones. I use Google Messages for most of my texting because stock phone number texting is what most people do in the U.S. I also use Snapchat and Facebook Messenger, but I text a lot.

I personally prefer Apple to get RCS support so I can continue to use Google Messages to text anyone regardless of the type of phone they have. If Apple introduced an iMessage app for Android I would then have to use 2 apps to text. I would want to text Android phones with Google Messages so I have RCS support, however I’d want to text iPhones with iMessage for a better experience. If I didn’t have data I’d need to use Google Messages for everyone for fallback to SMS. It’s messy!

So really the only fully integrated solution that makes sense is RCS. It would be nice to see Apple get the GSMA to add E2E encryption to the universal profile, but even without it would still be safer than SMS which sends plain text. At least RCS is encrypted in transit. I know some young folks are obsessed with bubble color, but as an Android user I just want to open Messages and have a rich texting experience no matter the phone I’m texting. If I don’t have data I want an SMS fallback. Anything else would get messy flipping between two apps depending on the phone I’m texting.

Completely agree with this (I don't want to see Apple release an iMessage for Android app for the same reason). Apple integrating RCS seems to be to be the best way forward for better interoperability and for boosting RCS.

 

[ozaz]

Don’t like iMessages, use alternative. Why should iMessages user care about what android user experiences? Why should Apple care about sharing iMessages to Android?

Lots of Apple users aren't willing to use anything other than the Apple Messages app. So using 3rd party messaging app for cross platform rich messaging is often not an option. That's the issue and the reason why a solution for cross platform rich messaging which involves Apple Messages app is wanted by many.

As to why iMessage users should care: they should care (and many do) because it affects them as well. If Apple's only standard solution for cross platform messaging is SMS then the inclusion of a single Android user in a group downgrades the chat experience for the iOS users much more than it needs to. Apple's decision to support RCS (which is probably only being done because Apple sees where regulation is heading) will bring a big improvement here. For me personally, this is enough of a solution (I don't think Apple should share iMessage to Android).

 

[HackMacDaddy]

Occupy iMessage

 

[TechieGeek]

Can Apple users communicate with Android users via the message app? Yes, they can and with RCS support coming, there is no need to expand it further.

Except Apple dragged their feet on RCS for....5 years? Longer? Just to try to make messaging between Android <> iPhone as ****** as possible until they saw that regulatory pressure would force their hand.

 

[ccsicecoke]

As an agency that enforces both competition and consumer protection laws

And I’m still getting scam calls on cellphone

 

[hagjohn]

Except Apple dragged their feet on RCS for....5 years? Longer? Just to try to make messaging between Android <> iPhone as ****** as possible until they saw that regulatory pressure would force their hand.

They sure have. The is no law saying Apple should give scrap about Android users. The nanny state is going to force their will on businesses.

 

[macfacts]

Perhaps Apple needs to no longer be an American company and find greener shores. The fact that any business can cry foul to the US government and have forced access to competitors products is ludicrous, it defeats the purpose of any company bothering to research and develop anything proprietary.

Apple hardly pays hardly any taxes in America, they pay taxes in Ireland.

 

[macfacts]

It won’t be long before every Apple service and app running on iOS or macOS will require paid a la-carte subscriptions.

Apple should invest their profits from hardware sales into their software instead of dividends to investors.

 

[redheeler]

Apple acts like a grade-school bully. In the end, I think Apple’s anticompetitive behavior will end up leading to parts of it being broken up. Remember when Microsoft was split up over browser influence? Companies have been allowed to grow into these giant anticompetitive forces now that destroy all competition, steal IP and even steal from its own developers! Really want Apple to be investigated and things to change.

It would be better for all of us. I love a lot of Apple things, but I hate the ecosystem that acts like a monopoly. And the vertical integration of the entire pipeline looks like a monopoly.

My perfect iPhone would be a Galaxy Ultra operating on an A17 Pro with iOS running.

My perfect computer would be an iPad running MacOS or a Thinkpad running MacOS. I don’t think companies should be forced to sell other companies products but I do think the vast size of Apple is good for nobody except maybe Tim and the top 1% of shareholders.

If Apple was split into six or seven companies, they would all be better. And interoperability would be a feature among all devices. Instead of a walled garden approach. It’s sticky as investors say, but it’s also anticompetitive. Investors will keep investing in these companies with monopolistic practices until someone puts an end to it. Build it all in America and then it at least builds up our economy. But there is just no advantage right now to allowing one company to control so much.

Both Apple and Google should be split up. Will it actually happen? Probably not. It's going to be especially unlikely after Republicans sweep in 2024 due to the Democrats' usual mishandling of issues like the Israel-Hamas war and alienating their own voters.

 

[DakotaGuy]

Both Apple and Google should be split up. Will it actually happen? Probably not. It's going to be especially unlikely after Republicans sweep in 2024 due to the Democrats' usual mishandling of issues like the Israel-Hamas war and alienating their own voters.

Splitting up Apple and Google and creating several separate companies would make things even worse. The integration that both companies have worked on to improve the user experience would all be broken up.