RCS Messages: A Big Deal For iPhones, But Is It Relevant To Everyone?

Apple surprised everyone recently by confirming its decision to bring RCS messages to iPhone users. A lot of people were definitely excited to hear about the development, but more than anyone, it was Google who would have been happy to hear the news.

RCS, or Rich Communication Services, has been around for years, but Google has decided to own the platform in the last few years and has asked more tech brands to join the green side.

Many people have been wondering how RCS support for iPhones from 2024 will affect Android users and could it be the iMessage competitor that many of us have been waiting for Apple to bring? Here’s what RCS messages do, how it works, and how it differs from iMessage.

RCS was supposed to be the new avatar of text messaging, and the GSM Association (GSMA) continued to push this to all telcos and even phone brands. However, the platform never got the proper attention until Google decided to take matters into their own hands and seek more attention.

RCS Messages vs iMessage – Are They Different?

RCS messaging is the Android version of iMessage and features similar features to apps like WhatsApp. It supports multimedia messaging, rich text content, allows you to share files, videos and even images. If you follow these features, you can say that RCS messages are a strong link between iPhone and Android users, allowing them to share multimedia and files that are not possible between RCS and iMessage.

RCS messages are claimed to be secure using client protocol encryption standards. In fact, RCS messages are also said to be spam-free. Now you must be wondering why Apple is bringing RCS to iPhones if the features are the same in iMessage?

The first reason is Apple’s ongoing battle with the European Union (EU), which has exerted its influence by forcing the company to introduce USB C charging on iPhones, something that would have been impossible a few years ago.

The regulator is also pushing the company to open up iPhones to other app stores in the form of sideloading, as well as making iPhones interoperable with other platforms such as Android, which will become possible if the company implements RCS messaging. That way, Apple doesn’t have to open up iMessage to other platforms and still be able to comply.

We’re anxious to see how Apple plans to support RCS messages for iPhones, but here’s the thing, the whole RCS vs iMessage saga is only relevant in the US, where iPhones are the market leader. So for other countries, WhatsApp will continue to be the main platform trusted by billions of users in non-US markets.