14 DAY TRIAL // iMessage continues to be an iOS-exclusive feature despite rumors that Apple might be bringing it on Android, and there’s a good reason for this.
Apple is well aware of the fact that iMessage is an important feature for many of its users and releasing it on Android could make the transition to the rival platform easier, thus having a strong impact on its own sales.
And while from Apple’s perspective launching an Android version of iMessage doesn’t make sense, this doesn’t necessarily mean that the company didn’t consider expanding the messaging platform beyond iOS.
Daring Fireball, who has a good track on Apple leaks, claims that iMessage for Android was actually developed and internal concepts featuring Material Design were tested by company engineers. As a result, although iMessage for Android is not yet available, it’s quite impossible to rule out the possibility of getting it at some point in the future, as Apple could always restart work on the project should it feel that iMessage would make sense on Android.
No Android release happening anytime soon
But if Apple indeed releases iMessage for Android, there’s no doubt that many users would migrate to Google’s platform, as the messaging app continues to be super popular in some parts of the world where alternatives such as WhatsApp aren’t that successful.
We’ve heard our readers saying that buying an iPhone was their only option because all their friends where using iMessage, so by opening the door to Android with a dedicated version of the app, Apple could very well hurt its own business.
For the moment, however, plans to bring iMessage on Android are no longer considered a priority within Apple, so non-iOS users won’t be getting access to the messaging platform anytime soon.
In the meantime, Cupertino seems to be more focused on improving iMessage for iOS with new features, and the latest major release of the OS brought a plethora of new options, including support for stickers and third-party add-ons.