As WhatsApp falls to the hands of Facebook for a hefty sum, many are thinking that this will benefit BBM or the BlackBerry Messenger. Facebook certainly made waves as it unexpectedly purchased WhatsApp for $19 billion, an amount that’s even bigger than the market capitalization of some more established companies like Sony. The WhatsApp acquisition is even considerably higher than the price offered for the acquisition of Nokia and Motorola combined.
BBM is regarded as one of the most compelling global mobile messaging apps because of its innovative way of connecting people. Although it is not as big as WhatsApp, many recognize its significance in the mobile messaging space. But does it have what it takes to pose a considerable challenge against WhatsApp and other online messaging apps?
We need to examine BBM’s current standing in the mobile messaging app market to come up with a rational answer.
Reliability
One of the many things that allowed BBM to get devoted fans to keep using it is its reliability. The BlackBerry Messenger is widely praised for its dependability. It has excellent uptime, as how many regular users would attest. Despite the well-publicized outage across different parts of the world last October 10 to 12, BBM continues to have a reputation of reliability.
Unique Features
The BlackBerry Messenger’s unique features allowed it to attract several users, especially those who are looking for a rich set of features not found in other messengers.
One of these distinctive BBM features is the message status indicators. For messages sent among BBM users, the app will indicate whether the message has already been delivered (D) or read (R) as indicated by the letters D or R above the check mark. This is a great feature that guarantees transparency. It is particularly useful among professionals or business people who want to make sure that the person they are communicating or transacting with are not going to lie about not receiving the important messages sent to them.
BBM also features Groups that can serve as a makeshift collaborative platform for those who need to discuss ideas or important information. In Groups, BBM users can engage in a group chat, share photos, create lists, and share calendar items. The chat logs in Groups may also be saved for later reference.
Additionally, for those who use BlackBerry devices, BBM enables free calls for BBM contacts over Wi-Fi. For the Android version of BBM, voice calls are allowed over Wi-Fi and mobile data connection.
Facing the Competition
With its advantages of reliability and compelling features, it’s only logical for BBM to up its ante and to be available for more users. Thankfully, the developers behind BBM have made changes to become competitive in the growing online messaging market. BBM was finally made available to Android and iOS users users on September 21 and September 22, 2013, respectively. Soon, it will also be available on Lumia smartphones.
iOS Version
As of February 13, 2014, the iOS version already offers a long list of features. These features include free voice calls between BBM contacts, the faster and easier sharing of multimedia files, location sharing, the ability to find friends from the smartphone contact list, and BBM groups that can accommodate up to 50 people. The iOS app also includes BBM Channels or conversations among BBM users, businesses, and communities.
Android Version
The Android version of BBM, on the other hand, has all the features available on the iOS app. It also comes with BBM Channels and support for BBM contact categories. The file sharing feature is also similar to the iOS version, allowing Dropbox account integration and the ability to instantly add photos, files, audio notes, and other attachments.
BBM appears to be the saving grace for BlackBerry Limited, the company formerly known as Research in Motion or the maker of BlackBerry smartphones. It is very important for it to become very competitive and to strive to become the number one mobile messaging app across platforms, since it appears to be the remaining glimmer of hope for its parent company.
So, does it have what it takes to become a leader in the field of mobile messaging? Taking all its unique features and solid fanbase into account, it definitely has. It can certainly serve as a very good alternative to the different mobile messengers dominating the market at present. The BlackBerry name continues to carry the reputation of being a secure platform. Think about it, President Obama has not changed his BlackBerry phone yet. It’s just unfortunate that the hardware that used to share BBM’s popularity back in the day is alarmingly failing.
Creating an Impact
BlackBerry should take the opportunity of getting a share of the WhatsApp limelight by pushing its system to more users. Now, tech journalists and common people are talking about BBM. It’s an opportune time to offer something that can grab attention.
It’s basically just a matter of promotion. BBM in itself has enough compelling and distinctive features that should make it appealing to more users. What it needs is some push to become more appealing again. What it needs is some strategy to reach more potential users. It can make use of some gimmick to drive attention.
Transcending the BlackBerry Ecosystem
WhatsApp and other mobile messaging apps have been very successful because they are not limited to one operating system. BBM, on the other hand, refused to be available to the bigger crowds of Android and iOS users. It’s never too late to take a chance. The decision to finally become available to iOS and Android users is certainly a good move, albeit late and reluctant. BlackBerry cannot expect BBM users to expand when it can’t sell the smartphones they intend BBM to be exclusively used with. Consider what Skype has done. Skype is a Microsoft property but it has been made available to Android and iOS. It is not limited to the Windows Mobile platform.
Again, the BlackBerry Messenger has enough enticing features to attract new users. It only needs to be available to more users beyond the BlackBerry operating system. Many hold the BlackBerry name with high regard and many also find BBM’s set of features very useful. People just need to know that BBM is already available on Android and iOS.
The brains behind BBM need to understand that if a “mere” mobile messaging platform like WhatsApp can merit a $19 billion valuation, there’s no reason to hold back on making BBM a major player in mobile messaging across different platforms. It should not only be used as a tool to attract buyers to get a BlackBerry smartphone. That cause is apparently hopeless.
Once people realize how BBM can be better than the many other popular messaging platforms online, rising to the top wouldn’t be that difficult. BBM can enable audio and video calls, support emoticons, and facilitate quick and easy file transfers – just like what every other messaging app is capable of doing. Together with BBM’s unique features, there’s no reason for it not to become successful. It only needs to be available and promoted to potential users.
Are you interested in trying the BlackBerry Messenger on your device? Downloading it is easy. Just click here if you are an Android device user and click here if you are with iOS.
Photo credit: Taken by Research in Motion under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Google+
LinkedIn
Email