Today, Apple surprisingly announced that RCS (Rich Communication Services) support will come to iPhones. This feature will be available via software update late next year. Apple says RCS will work with iMessage and improve communication between iPhone and Android phone users.RCS coming to iPhones in 2024
Apple’s statement is as follows; “Towards the end of next year, we will add support for RCS Universal Profile, a standard currently published by the GSM Association. We believe that RCS Universal Profile will provide better interoperability experience compared to SMS or MMS. “This will work alongside iMessage, which will continue to be the best and most secure messaging experience for Apple users.”
Will work with iMessage
RCS will bring many iMessage-style features to cross-platform messaging between iPhone and Android devices. This includes read receipts, writing… information, high-quality photos and videos, and more. Apple says the RCS app will also give users the ability to share their location with others in chat. Unlike regular SMS, RCS can also work over mobile data or Wi-Fi.
For those wondering what will happen to iMessage; iMessage isn’t going anywhere. It will continue to be the messaging platform used for all communication between iPhone users. RCS will replace SMS and MMS and will exist separately from iMessage when available. Apple says SMS and MMS will also continue to be available as backup when needed.
Apple: iMessage is more secure
Apple also reiterates that iMessage is much more secure and privacy-friendly than RCS. iMessage is end-to-end encrypted. Apple has taken this a step further with its Advanced Data Protection feature for Messages in iCloud. Meanwhile, Apple says RCS doesn’t currently support encryption as strong as iMessage.
Apple’s decision to adopt RCS comes after years of pressure from some of its rivals, including Samsung and Google. To date, the company has resisted this pressure and pushed iMessage instead. Made some improvements to the SMS experience between iPhone and Android devices. Finally, Apple also announced that they will work with GSMA members to improve the RCS protocol (related to security and encryption).
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