BlackBerry Messenger is still one of the most popular services out there

Jul 27, 2014 21:47 GMT  ·  By

Next week, owners of Windows Phone devices will be able to download and install yet another highly popular messaging application, one that many of them have been long waiting for, namely BBM (BlackBerry Messenger).

The messaging application, long available exclusively on BlackBerry handsets, has already arrived on Android and iOS, and might enjoy even more expanded availability after its landing on Windows Phone (it was rumored to be released on Windows computers as well).

The arrival of BBM for Windows Phone is of great importance for Microsoft’s mobile operating system, as it can now offer yet another highly appreciated app that further brings it in line with rival mobile platforms out there, but it is equally significant for BlackBerry itself too.

With the release of this new application, BlackBerry is finally making its messaging service a true cross-platform product, given that it will be offering it on four of the largest mobile OSes out there, BlackBerry included.

A couple of years ago, no one believed that the day would come when BlackBerry would offer the service outside its proprietary operating system, but the fast-changing smartphone landscape determined the Canadian company to adjust its strategy accordingly.

While it might not be the most popular messaging service out there, BBM has hundreds of millions of users, and its availability on yet another platform will certainly help it in its struggle against competitors.

For BlackBerry, this will also mean that many of those who stopped using BBM as they moved away from the BlackBerry OS in favor of more popular mobile platforms might return to the messaging service once again.

And since messaging applications and services are some of the most important products that smartphone users take advantage of at the moment, BBM’s cross-platform availability will certainly prove to be in its advantage, as its name still precedes it.

Lately, BlackBerry has been hard at work with the building of BBM as a platform of its own, adding various services to it, such as BBM Protected, one of the first products in the eBBM Suite, which is aimed at enterprise users.

Additionally, the company launched BBM Channels, so that users could get in touch and follow favorite brands, along with the BBM Shop, which offers access to Stickers, aimed at delivering new and fun ways to communicate.

But there’s more to it, as BlackBerry is also testing a BBM Money app in Indonesia, providing users with peer-to-peer money transfer capabilities, along with bill payment and top-up. Users can easily send money to their friends and family in their BBM Contacts, all straight from within BBM.

In addition to messaging, BBM also provides users with Voice and Video capabilities, so that they can engage in conversations with their contacts in more ways than before.

Of course, not all of these features will make it to Windows Phone right away, but BlackBerry is working on bringing them to all mobile platforms on which BBM is available, thus adding more value to its platform.

At the moment, BlackBerry is losing big on the smartphone sales in front of Android, iOS, and Windows Phone, but it appears that it has found a way to still be present in people’s lives by making BBM a cross-platform service.

By the looks of it, the company has discovered a way to reinvent itself on the mobile space, specifically through BBM, which is more and more a platform on its own, a product that has moved way beyond simple messaging.

New BlackBerry devices will arrive later this year, and they might actually prove highly popular, though only among enthusiasts, who are still waiting for their favorite company to release a truly remarkable modern phone.

However, I do believe that there’s little chance that BlackBerry Passport, the rumored BlackBerry Z3 LTE, or another new phone will actually manage to turn things around for the company, at least when taking into consideration today’s smartphone market.

While I think that, on the long term, the handset vendor will be able to regain its foothold, I also see BBM as being one of the most important products for it to focus on at the moment, as it is still high in users’ preferences.

Building it as a platform available on multiple mobile operating systems out there is also a great thing for the company, since it can prove this way that it can deliver great products that millions of users are attracted to.

BBM on all major platforms is certainly a base to build upon and could help BlackBerry regain not only some of the BBM users who left the service over the past few years, but also some BlackBerry users who moved to other platforms.

The mobile space has grown significantly over the past several years, moving past the PC and other media when it comes to getting in touch with consumers, and BlackBerry appears to be well aware of that, while also determined to seize this new opportunity it was given.

And with messaging applications already proving one of the most important functions on mobile devices out there, with SMS long left behind, bringing BBM on as many platforms as possible is indeed the right thing to do for BlackBerry, in my opinion.

However, BBM is facing a bumpy road ahead, as other messaging services are also scaling up their offerings in order to gain more traction, including Skype, LINE, WeChat, Viber, and even Facebook with its Messenger and with the impending WhatsApp acquisition.

But if the Canadian company continues to add new services to the BBM Platform, it will manage to achieve its purpose of remaining one of the most significant names in the mobile industry.