BlackBerry Announces BBM for iOS and Android
Posted May 14, 2013 12:48 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Good news for those who have traded in their BlackBerry but are still missing their beloved BBM. The popular messaging service is coming to iOS and Android.
BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins made the announcement to a room full of cheers at the company’s annual developers conference BlackBerry Live in Orlando Florida.
“BBM was a key element why people were going for Blackberry” says Thorsten. “We feel this product is ready to stand on its own legs. Now is the time to release BBM on a different level and let it flourish on its own.”
The app, which will work on iOS 6 and Android (Ice Cream sandwich and above), will initially only support text and group features, but expect it to include BBM video, screen share and the new Channels feature in the coming months.
“it’s a statement of confidence. We are confident for BBM to become an independent multi-platform solution” Thorstein told the crowd.
BlackBerry Messenger currently has 60 million monthly active users. More than 10 billion messages sent and received through BBM every day, most read within 20 seconds of being received.
BBM for iOS and Android will be free when it launches closer to summer.
