Apple explains why iMessage is unlikely to ever land on Android

By Trevor Mogg June 16, 2016

how to save text messages — Kritchanut/Shutterstock

As Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering Craig Federighi proudly showed off a ton of new features for iMessage during Apple’s keynote at WWDC on Monday, the word Android never crossed his lips once.

Federighi’s failure to make any mention of Google’s mobile operating system put to bed recent rumors that the messaging software was about to extend its reach beyond iOS.

Related Videos

A couple of days on and a senior Apple executive has offered up a couple of reasons why the company has no immediate plan to launch iMessage for Android, and may never do so.

Speaking to tech journalist Walt Mossberg, the unnamed executive said that with a billion iOS devices in use, it already has access to a large enough data set for any AI initiatives the company may be working on.

And secondly, the executive took the familiar Apple line that building something desirable exclusively for Apple’s ecosystem will help strengthen loyalty among its current user base and at the same time drive sales of its devices.

Of course, Apple isn’t entirely averse to taking its own apps beyond iOS. Apple Music launched for Android last year, though obviously, in contrast to iMessage, the service presents a huge revenue opportunity for Apple.

So there you have it. iMessage looks set to remain exclusive to Apple users for the foreseeable future, with the Cupertino company considering it an important part of its ecosystem. This was certainly reflected in its decision to overhaul the app, with lots of new features announced for the software at the start of the week.

iDevice owners can try out the revamped app when iOS 10 launches in the fall, but if you missed Monday’s keynote and are keen to to learn more about what’s coming with the next version of iMessage, check out our report here.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Mobile

Apple Watch Series 9: the 6 biggest things we want to see

The Apple Watch Ultra with the Apple Watch Series 8 and Watch SE 2.

The Apple Watch Series 8 was a bit of a boring release for Apple’s wearable, as it wasn’t a huge upgrade over the Apple Watch Series 7; Apple seemed to spend more energy focusing on the Apple Watch Ultra instead. The only real upgrades for the Series 8 were the newer-generation S8 chip and a new body temperature sensor, though the use cases for that are pretty limited. But if you didn’t have a Series 7, then the Apple Watch Series 8 was still a great upgrade for those coming from older models.

We’re still a few months away from Apple revealing the next generation of Apple Watch with a Series 9 model, which is most likely coming sometime in the fall, along with the iPhone 15. But until then, here’s what I’m hoping Apple will put in the Apple Watch Series 9 when it finally comes out.
Nonintrusive blood glucose monitoring

Mobile

Pixel Watch update brings a much-requested Apple Watch feature

Man using the Google Pixel Watch's app menu.

The Pixel Watch is a solid first outing as Google's debut smartwatch. However, it's still lacking a handful of features that early adopters have been requesting that are found on similar devices. Luckily, today marks the start of the rollout of one frequently requested feature: fall detection.

Fall detection is a crucial health and safety feature that all smartwatches are better for having, and now the Pixel Watch is finally joining the ranks of the Apple Watch and the Galaxy Watch with its addition.

Mobile

iPhone 15: release date and price predictions, leaks, rumors, and more

iPhone 15 render by 4RMD

As great as the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro are, they're both already a few months old at this point, and the rumors about the iPhone 15 are well underway. We still have several months before the iPhone 15 models drop, though, as Apple usually makes iPhone announcements in the fall. In other words, there's still a lot of time for rumors to circulate around the internet.

We're keeping all of the reports and rumors of the iPhone 15 here in a single place for your convenience, but do remember to keep in mind that these are all still just speculation. Nothing is final until Apple confirms it during an official announcement. Still, a lot of the rumors give us an idea of what to expect each year, which is unfortunate if you like surprises. Here's everything we know of the iPhone 15 so far!
iPhone 15: models