Apple Signals the End of SMS

And the RCS Optimists Rejoice

After a six-week sprint criss-crossing the country, I expected this week to be quiet and didn’t have a newsletter or a blog post lined up. But Apple had different plans.

Unless you’ve been in a social media detox or just came back from hiking the Andes, you have heard Apple’s announcement that it will support RCS by late 2024. 

After a decade of pleading, cajoling, and shaming, Apple has decided to get on board the RCS train. It is a pleasant Thanksgiving surprise. The one ubiquitous app (other than the voice call) that unifies the network is now assured a much-needed revamp.  

What Does It Mean?

Delivery status, typing indicators, and better media support will now work across both iOS and Android devices. Even if there are concerns that Apple may take a minimal viable compliance approach to RCS, this is absolutely great for the consumer experience. If A2P is the invite to the P2P party, well, the party just got a whole lot bigger. 

While the consumer is the ultimate winner, so are the RCS-first messaging providers. 

Dotgo, for example, has been an RCS innovator in many mobile-first, RCS-ready economies such as India, South Africa, and Nigeria. They recently marked a key milestone, having sent 500 million monetized RCS messages last quarter. While based in the US, it was the Rest of the World (RoW) that led their growth. They can now capitalize on their international experience to leapfrog the North American market.

But First, a Hooray for the Optimists

For many of us, this is personal. For a while RCS in North America seemed to be in hibernation. GSMA had relinquished its leadership role, the US carriers’ attempts had proved futile, and with 50% of the devices not supporting the medium, many companies lost the desire to invest. But the optimists persisted.

In 2018, my team at EZ Texting helped ADP build the first passwordless authentication use case in the world. At that time, it worked only on Sprint. Later that year, I led the company’s charge, alongside Twilio, for the FCC to declare RCS and other OTT apps as excluded from the definition of a “text message.” I believe now, as I did back then, that for RCS to thrive, regulatory forbearance is necessary. The FCC has reaffirmed this as recently as this February.

Being excluded from the definition from “text message” also means that an RCS message, for the time being, is protected from TCPA liability. We as an industry should take this regulatory holiday seriously and must use it wisely. 

For others, RCS has been a lot more personal. Sinch’s senior director of product, Jon Campbell, for example, moved lock, stock, and barrel from the UK to Atlanta as part of that company’s early bet that RCS was going to be huge in America. That was six years ago. 

“For me, RCS is personal,” says Jon. “I remember the day I told my family we’re moving to the US. It was a bet that RCS was going to change the way we communicate, and the US would lead the charge. With the Apple announcement to support RCS, it’s hard not to get caught up in the industry frenzy . . . and the personal emotions.”

What Does It Mean to the Business of Business Messaging?

First, there’s no excuse anymore to get RCS (or its business cousin, RBM) working on every device, every network all over the world. Apple’s lack of support has been a convenient scapegoat for not working on getting details of onboarding (KYC), messaging rates, and feedback loops right.

Brands, be they the enterprise or the small business, will ask how to send messages with an “OK” confirm button, an image carousel, or enable purchases in-app. A generic lead-generation sign-up form or send-email-to-generic-inbox can no longer be our response.

As for brands, if you don’t have an RCS strategy, you need one now! Like I said back in May, 

The technology will be here before you know it. And if you start your product conversation when “everyone is doing it,” you’re already late. Technology is notoriously ruthless to those who are late to adopt it. The prize always goes to the risk-taker, the early entrant, the one who has already tested out the kinks before going all in. Start now so you can learn and iterate, and when it becomes mainstream, you’re already surfing the wave instead of trying to paddle out to one.

Finally

RCS will replace SMS. That’s the only way for messaging to thrive. Apple just started the countdown clock. 

Dotgo CEO, Inderpal Mumick said it best, “The best news for RCS since Google acquired Jibe. All doubts on RCS are behind us. Get ready to welcome RCS. Sayonara, SMS.” 

Getting RBM done just became the top TODO of 2024.

Thank you for reading and have a great week!

TJ