Big Google Billboard Asks Apple to Fix ‘Pixelated’ Photos and Videos in Messages Switched Between iPhone and Android by Adopting RCS Messaging Protocol

It’s no secret that Google has made many attempts to convince Apple to integrate RCS into its messaging service, but so far the iPhone maker has been reluctant to open up the boundaries of iMessage. Last August, Google created a dedicated website urging Apple to adopt RCS. But the Cupertino company remains steadfast in providing users with only iMessage and standard SMS as standard services. An idea that doesn’t sit well with Google, which says its goal is to improve the experience of Android users by giving them more tools to communicate.

For those who don’t know, RCS is an improved version of the SMS system that provides a richer experience for users. Designed to replace SMS and MMS messaging, it allows users to create group chats with friends, send pictures and videos, get delivery receipts, and supports end-to-end encryption. Also, there is no 160 character limit like regular SMS. RCS originated in 2007 and was adopted by the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSMA) in 2008. It is available for Android operating system users.

In December 2019, several US carriers, including Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile, committed to supporting the protocol. RCS-based messaging works using cellular data or Wi-Fi, so if the recipient doesn’t have cellular service but is on a wireless network, you still have the option of sending messages seamlessly. However, while more and more organizations are adopting the RCS protocol, Apple, which controls iOS, the world’s second most used mobile operating system after Android, still refuses to follow the trend. This caused him to be mocked by his rival Google.

To mark the start of the new year, Google has once again called Apple to action, this time renting out an entire large digital billboard in Las Vegas that is sure to get the message across. “The ball may have dropped in 2022, but you didn’t drop the ball to fix your pixelated photos and videos,” the billboard reads. The post is followed by a faint scroll of lines of RCS code that Google says will help Apple “get things done.” TikTok user Uptin shared a video showing a Google billboard.

About 56% of Americans use iOS, with Android in second place with about 44% market share in the US, Uptin noted. Also, after passing the RCS lines of code, Google called out to customers to help Apple follow the trend with the hashtag “#GetTheMessage.” Google launched the “#GetTheMessage” campaign with its comprehensive website in August to showcase the benefits of the RCS protocol. It’s the latest move in Google’s lobbying campaign against Apple over the messaging problem between iPhone and Android phones.

“This digital display demonstrates Android’s desire to create more interactions between devices and provide a great messaging experience across all platforms,” ​​a Google Insider spokesperson said, adding that Google is at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week. In December, Google continued its campaign against Apple with a “happy birthday” text message that turns 30 in 2022. “While I’m all for nostalgia, I want to look the other way,” Neena wrote. Messages Manager by Budhiraja, Product Google.

Today’s phones are capable of much more; my current phone is a completely different device than my first phone,” added Budhiraja. Google has been pushing Apple to adopt RCS for over a year through its website, Twitter calls, billboards and more, but the iPhone maker has given no credit to Google’s efforts. In fact, Apple CEO Tim Cook recently said that the RCS protocol is not a priority. “I don’t hear our users asking us to put a lot of energy into it at this point,” Cook said.

People have long complained about “green bubbles” appearing in iMessage when an iPhone owner and an Android owner exchange text messages, giving Apple a taste of its own medicine with the latest update to Google’s Messages app. Now, when Messages users react to a text message, the iPhone user will receive a text saying they reacted to that person’s text, along with a description of the reaction, such as “liked” or “loved.” showing a thumb or heart in the message. Which is the pinnacle of Apple.

In the September conversation, Cook, an iPhone-owning audience member who wondered about problems with videos sent between her and her Android-owning mother, responded: Buy your mom an iPhone. . Legal documents from a 2011 lawsuit between Apple and Epic Games shed more light on how the company views iMessage, with one Apple executive saying that “moving iMessage to Android would do us more harm than good.”

It remains to be seen whether Apple will respond to this craze or stick to its position of not aligning its messaging service with the rest of the industry. Either way, it’s likely that CEO Tim Cook will simply tell those with pixelated photos and videos to buy an iPhone, or buy one for everyone they know.

And you?

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See also

Google is trying to publicly embarrass Apple for forcing the company to adopt RCS, a mobile messaging protocol.

The Google Messages update will force iPhone users to read reaction descriptions in mojis, a ploy to trick Apple into switching to RCS for messaging.

Buy your mom an iPhone, says journalist Tim Cook, explaining his concerns about text messaging compatibility between Android and iOS because Apple is reluctant to adopt RCS and abandon iMessage.