Apple may be forced by the EU to support RCS in the 27 EU member countries
Last year, Google put up signs in Times Square demanding that Apple support RCS
What is interesting is that RCS gives Android users many of the same features that iMessage gives iOS users such as end-to-end encryption, support for longer texts, high-quality images and videos, read receipts, typing indicators, and more. And here’s the thing. Just like with iMessage, all of the extra goodies we just listed go away if an iOS user joins a group chat made up of Android users. Since Apple believes that iMessage is a unique feature that attracts iPhone buyers, Apple wants nothing to do with adding support for RCS.
Apple says that iMessage doesn’t have enough EU users to be considered a gatekeeper
But let’s get back to the issue at hand. If the EU says that iMessage is a gatekeeper, Apple will be forced to support rival messaging platforms such as RCS. A company is considered a gatekeeper in the EU if had an average turnover of at least €7.5 billion in the last three financial years, or had a fair market value of at least €75 billion in the last financial year.
Apple argues that iMessage, by itself, is not big enough to be a gatekeeper. Apple is hoping that the EU agrees in which case, Apple will not have to add support for RCS in the EU. If iMessage is considered a gatekeeper, Apple will have until March 24th to support RCS in the economic union.
Unlike changing the iPhone’s port from Lightning to USB-C which Apple is doing worldwide, the company would probably decide to offer RCS support, if forced to do so, in the 27 EU member countries only. The same thing would probably happen if Apple is forced to support third-party app stores and sideloading.