[NJTechDiv] At&T, Verizon, Sprint and t mobile work together to replace antiquated text messaging
Jane Degenshein
jdegen16 at comcast.net
Mon Oct 28 01:25:26 UTC 2019
not sure but perhaps, we can contact one of the providers and ask?
From: Alice Eaddy
Sent: Sunday, October 27, 2019 9:14 PM
To: New Jersey Technology Division List
Cc: Jane Degenshein
Subject: Re: [NJTechDiv] At&T, Verizon, Sprint and t mobile work together to
replace antiquated text messaging
Dear Jane and njtechdiv,
If this roll out occurs down the road what will it mean for blind and
DeafBlind accessibility?
Alice
Sent from my iPhone
On Oct 27, 2019, at 8:02 PM, Jane Degenshein via NJTechDiv
<njtechdiv at nfbnet.org> wrote:
Here is an article I got on Friday and thought I would share with my list
serve
By Mike Peterson
The U.S.’s big four carriers announced a new partnership to push a
next-generation messaging standard that could eventually replace SMS text
messaging.
AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint announced the “Cross-Carrier Messaging
Initiative” (CCMI) in a joint press release on Friday.
That initiative focuses on the RCS messaging protocol — which could
simultaneously replace SMS and put pressure on iMessage. Here’s what you
should know.
Replacing SMS with RCS
In a nutshell, the RCS (Rich Communication Services) protocol will bring
internet-based messaging features — like those seen on WhatsApp or
iMessage — to standard text messages.
SMS is an objectively terrible messaging standard, especially when
compared to the aforementioned internet standards.
If carriers actually do end up adopting RCS, it could mean better group
chats, typing indicators and higher-quality images and videos, among other
benefits. Basically, everything that iMessage does and SMS doesn’t. (RCS is
not currently end-to-end encrypted like iMessage is, however.)
But RCS is also extremely complicated, both technically and politically.
The bottlenecks associated with actually adopting the standard are likely
why you may never have heard of it.
What the Carriers Announced Today
CCMI is, essentially, a coalition of the biggest carriers in the U.S. The
joint venture’s main goal is to “create a single seamless, interoperable RCS
experience across carriers, both in the U.S. and globally.”
While the CCMI has a long way to go, it did announce a new RCS-based
Android app that will ship sometime next year.
The CCMI will also work with device manufacturers to ensure that the
messaging standard is interoperable across various smartphones and systems.
Though, at this point, Google, Samsung and other OEMs haven’t commented.
Lastly, the CCMI also positions RCS as a potential win for businesses,
allowing customers to interact with brands and support staff much more
easily than they would over SMS.
What This Means for Apple
It’s not clear what this means for Apple, particularly since it’s very
early in RCS’s potential adoption.
But, of course, there have long been problems with SMS text messages,
particularly on iPhones. You may be familiar with the whole green bubble /
blue bubble debacle.
A universal RCS standard would essentially do away with the differences
between Android and iMessage protocols. But that is, of course, dependent on
whether or not Apple actually adopts it on its iPhones.
Apple, for its part, has offered no comment on the RCS standard. That’s
likely because it already has iMessage, so its users may not benefit the
same way Android users will.
But, like WhatsApp or other internet-based protocols, a universal RCS
standard could go toe-to-toe with iMessage and put quite a bit of pressure
on Apple. If iMessage loses its advantages, then Apple may have a stronger
incentive to bring iMessage to Android, for example.
Bottom Line
The universal adoption of RCS is likely quite a while away. But today’s
announcement does indicate that SMS’s days are numbered and a better
messaging future may be on the horizon.
Keep Smiling,
Janie Degenshein
Happiness isn't having what you want, but wanting what you already have!
Facilitator of ECHO (Eyes Closed Hearts Open)
state affiliate board member
President of the senior division of the National Federation of the Blind
of New Jersey
to join the senior list serve:
https://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbnj-seniors_nfbnet.org
President of the Technology division of the National federation of the
Blind of New Jersey
To join the tech div list serve:
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/njtechdiv_nfbnet.org
NFBNJ Newsline co-ordinator
jdegen16 at comcast.net
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