According to Google, Apple Is Bullying Android with Green Text Messages

One of Google’s execs recently made a statement about Apple’s iMessage service, claiming that it’s used to bully people into buying Apple products. 

Hiroshi Lockheimer, Vice President of Google, said on Twitter that Apple is using iMessage as a documented lock-in strategy. According to Lockheimer, Apple’s using “peer pressure and bullying as a way to sell products.”

This is all in response to an article published by the Wall Street Journal, claiming that peer pressure between teenagers makes them want an iPhone to avoid being the one causing green text bubbles in the chat.

The article also mentioned how Apple limits certain features to iPhone users, which could be a clever way to make people want to switch to iPhone without actually forcing it.

Even though the Tweet above might seem like a little much, it all goes back to the “standards” Lockheimer mentions. Lockheimer doesn’t want Apple to adjust to Android but to the Rich Communication Services that are now available. 

Rich Communication Services, or RCS for short, is a fairly new way of text messaging that gives users the chance to use many features iMessage has. These features include the ability to send high-resolution photos and videos, share your location, and create and manage group chats—basically, everything you can do with most internet messaging apps these days.

Even though RCS isn’t supported by all the carriers, Apple hasn’t made any intentions to start supporting it on iPhone either. Lockheimer and Android had previously tried to help Apple begin supporting RCS, which didn’t happen.

Whether or not Lockheimer is right, Apple’s indeed winning the smartphone wars with teenagers. It’s been reported on many occasions that teenagers today prefer to have an iPhone over an Android phone in the U.S. A recent report concluded that almost 88% of U.S. teens own an iPhone, and over 90% want an iPhone as their next smartphone.