Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has confirmed plans to merge WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook Messenger — but says it probably won’t happen until 2020 at the earliest.
In a fourth-quarter earnings call this week, Zuckerberg also explained the reasons behind the plan, such as increased security with end-to-end encryption. Many questions still remain unanswered, however.
Apple is said to be “in discussions” over adding Rich Communications Services (RCS) to iOS.
The upgrade to traditional text messaging would allow for some iMessage features — like read receipts and typing indicators — when talking to friends who use Android and other platforms.
WhatsApp is one of the biggest messaging platforms on the planet, and it has somehow gone without support for stickers — until now!
Some users now have the ability to send and receive stickers, and the rest will be able to enjoy the same functionality on both Android and iOS in the coming weeks. A selection of sticker packs from WhatsApp own designers are available, and third-party packs are coming soon.
Secure messaging app Telegram now lets you save copies of your most important documents so that you always have them with you.
Telegram Passport can hold your driving license, passport, other forms of ID, and more — and promises to protect them with end-to-end encryption. You can then use those documents to prove who you are when logging into other services.
A Russian court has ordered that the Telegram messaging app should be blocked in the country. This is due to the company’s refusal to give Russian state security services the encryption keys to access messages sent using the service.
Russia’s FSB Federal Security service argued that it needs to be able to access the messages to safeguard against terrorist attacks. However, Telegram refused to comply with the demands for reasons of user privacy.
Telegram and Telegram X vanished from the App Store on Wednesday and are yet to return. It’s not yet clear if the apps were pulled by Apple or Telegram.
WhatsApp has become the first major messaging platform to add CarPlay support. Users can have their WhatsApp conversations read to them, dictate replies, and more without taking their hands off the wheel.
Instagram users may soon get a second app dedicated solely to messaging other people on Instagram.
The new direct messaging app is called Direct and could be Instagram’s first move towards removing messaging from the main photo-sharing app.
Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel has revealed that Snapchat’s app will be undergoing a major redesign, after the company fell short of expected growth projections for the quarter.
In a letter to investors, Spiegel blamed the difficulties on the service being too difficult for many users to understand. “One thing we have heard over the years is that Snapchat is difficult to understand or hard to use,” he wrote — adding that, “Our team has been working on responding to this feedback.”
If you find yourself doing more and more instant messaging through Twitter these days, you need TwIM for iPhone.
This free and simple app is powered by Twitter’s direct messages, and it makes it easy to have one-on-one conversations with your followers.
