AT&T begins utilizing Google’s Jibe platform for RCS messages
AT&T has supported RCS messaging on Android telephones . However when you , the expertise hasn’t at all times been nice, with interoperability between totally different units . That’s about to vary. Over the weekend, Hiroshi Lockheimer, Google’s senior vice chairman of Android, tweeted (by way of ) that AT&T is migrating its RCS backend to Google’s personal Jibe platform. Per Lockheimer, the change means AT&T prospects will get the newest RCS options “immediately.” It also needs to resolve any lingering interoperability points between AT&T telephones and units on totally different networks.
At present I am excited to share that we’re working with AT&T to speed up adoption of the RCS normal, and that AT&T’s default Android messaging will now be by way of the Jibe platform, so their customers will get the newest RCS options immediately.
— Hiroshi Lockheimer (@lockheimer) June 9, 2023
AT&T, Verizon and T-Cellular have been dedicated to RCS since forming the Cross Provider Messaging Initiative in , but it surely was solely after asserting the , and Google changing into extra straight concerned with pushing the platform, that RCS started discovering a foothold within the US. In 2021, grew to become the primary provider to decide to preloading Google Messages on its Android units. A yr later, Verizon .
At I/O 2023, Google introduced that there are greater than 800 million folks utilizing RCS globally, with that quantity anticipated to extend to 1 billion by the top of the yr. Nonetheless, the platform faces a significant hurdle. Apple has proven no indicators it’s , even when Google retains . Till one thing adjustments, which means RCS options like end-to-end encryption don’t work when Android customers textual content family and friends members who use iPhones.