In a surprise move, Apple announced that iPhones will support Rich Communication Services (RCS), a messaging standard—currently used by most Android phones—that replaces SMS and MMS, in 2024.
RCS allows iPhone users to message Android devices in a more secure, seamless fashion than SMS.
It will address long-standing issues for those who frequently communicate between iPhones and Android, such as the sending of low-quality videos and the lack of encryption in SMS. However, RCS will not replace iMessage and green texts.
"Later next year, we will be adding support for RCS Universal Profile, the standard as currently published by the GSM Association (GSMA). We believe RCS Universal Profile will offer a better interoperability experience when compared to SMS or MMS," Apple spokeswoman Jacqueline Roy said in a statement to the press.
"This will work alongside iMessage, which will continue to be the best and most secure messaging experience for Apple users," she added.
The adoption of RCS by Apple is expected to enhance the texting experience between iPhone and Android devices, enabling features like encryption, read receipts, and the sharing of high-resolution images and videos.
Apple has previously pushed against adopting RCS. At last year's Code conference, Tim Cook, Apple's CEO, famously said "Buy your mom an iPhone" to an attendee talking about the challenges of communications between iPhones and Androids and the introduction of RCS.
The move by Apple is likely in response to regulatory pressure from the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA), which requires interoperability. Since September, the European Commission has been investigating Apple as a "gatekeeper" and iMessage as a "core platform service," which would need to meet the DMA requirements.
The DMA designates a "gatekeeper" on three criteria: size, control of a gateway, and established position. More specifically, "If the company achieves an annual turnover in the European Economic Area equal to or above €7.5 billion ($8.2 billion) in each of the last three financial years," and "if the company operates a core platform service with more than 45 million monthly active end users established or located in the EU."
Google's senior vice president of platforms and ecosystems, Hiroshi Lockheimer, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, about the development, saying, "Everybody should have secure and modern messaging without worrying what kind of phone they're texting to. So glad to see Apple joining our ongoing work with the GSMA on RCS to make texting better for all!"
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