Apple’s iMessage Won’t Have to Connect With Other Chat Apps, EU Rules

Apple’s iMessage would not qualify as a gatekeeper service, in keeping with the European Union, that means that the corporate’s Messages app won’t must immediately join with different chat apps.

The EU made the announcement Tuesday, stating that Apple’s iMessage service not qualifies as a gatekeeper beneath the governing physique’s Digital Markets Act. Whereas iMessage was beforehand thought-about to fall beneath that label, Apple submitted a rebuttal in September that seems to have modified that designation for now.

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Companies that qualify as gatekeepers beneath the DMA should meet a number of requirements to function within the European Union. Meta’s WhatsApp falls beneath the EU’s gatekeeper label, so the corporate has been readying a third-party chats part to allow conversations to happen throughout different companies. The identical has been utilized to the corporate’s Messenger app. In response to paperwork on the Digital Markets Act’s web site citing the designation for each of Meta’s companies, the scale of the communication platform in addition to the platform’s means to monetize are considered.

The iMessage announcement got here alongside an identical announcement for Microsoft’s Bing search engine and Edge net browser, each of which won’t be seen as gatekeepers for now.

“The Fee will proceed to observe the developments available on the market with respect to those companies, ought to any substantial modifications come up,” the EU stated in its announcement. “The selections don’t have an effect on in any means the designation of Apple and Microsoft as gatekeepers on 5 September 2023 as regards their different core platform companies.”

Apple’s rebuttal, in keeping with paperwork dated on Sept. 5, consists of the corporate’s opinion that iMessage is just not a fee-based service regardless of the requirement to buy an iPhone and that sure iMessage companies are bought by Apple’s App Retailer as a substitute of the Messages app. The EU didn’t element in its Tuesday announcement which components of Apple’s rebuttal finally led to the choice to take away the gatekeeper designation, stating that non-confidential paperwork regarding the choice will likely be revealed quickly.

Whereas Apple’s iMessage won’t be thought-about a gateway service by the EU to require interoperability, the corporate is planning to help the RCS texting commonplace this yr, which many Android telephones already help by the Google Messages app. Whereas we’re nonetheless ready for particulars on when Apple will launch RCS and the way it will implement it, the iPhone maker has stated it will likely be working with the GSM Affiliation to help RCS alongside iMessage.

Apple agreed with the EU’s announcement, pointing to the opposite third-party messaging apps the iPhone helps.

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“We thank the Fee for agreeing with us that iMessage shouldn’t be designated beneath the DMA,” Apple stated in an announcement. “iMessage is a good service that Apple customers love as a result of it offers a straightforward technique to talk with family and friends whereas providing industry-leading privateness and safety protections. Customers in the present day have entry to all kinds of messaging apps, and sometimes use many without delay, which displays how simple it’s to modify between them.”

Despite the fact that Apple will not want to switch iMessage to adjust to the EU, it should make different modifications to iOS to maintain promoting its units within the area. That features permitting rival App Shops to seem on iOS, a proactive immediate that informs customers they will decide different net browsers apart from Safari and entry to different fee companies. Many of those modifications will solely be seen within the European Union, however the EU’s rulings have paved the way in which towards Apple bringing USB-C to the iPhone 15 line in all areas.