The BlackBerry’s messenger service has proven itself to be tremendously popular.
BlackBerry is finally enjoying some time in the spotlight for a positive reason, which is connected to the popularity of the release of its BBM apps for Android and iOS device users.
The messenger service was recently released for those two operating systems and is being downloaded by the millions.
The BlackBerry devices may not have been selling at the rate that they had hoped, but its messenger apps are a huge hit among Apple and Android smartphone owners. According to the company’s own data, there had already been more than 10 million downloads of the BlackBerry Messenger service within the first 24 hours of its initial release to users of devices that were not from that manufacturer.
BlackBerry said that its apps are now processing approximately 500,000 new users every hour.
Jeff Gadway, a spokesperson for BlackBerry, said that “We have absolutely incredible demand we’re trying to manage.” He added that “We’re off to a really good start.” This hype and popularity for the apps is very welcome news for the Canadian company, which has been fighting a losing battle with its competitors in the smartphone marketplace and has put itself up for sale.
These new millions of users of the apps are in addition to the 60 million BlackBerry users who are already using the BBM service. That said, it is not yet clear how the manufacturer will actually generate any money from this popular new service. The application, itself, is free, and there is competition within the instant messaging sphere, to the point that BBM is not currently the leader.
Among the BBM apps, the one designed specifically for BlackBerry users was the very first instant messenger created specifically for smartphones, and it rapidly became exceptionally popular in the last half of the first decade of the 2000s. It provides users the ability to keep their identities secure through a unique and protected anonymous code, and to know when their messages had been delivered to the recipients, and when they had been opened. Now, despite a large number of alternatives, other device users are beginning to enjoy this same benefit.
The company’s data compression could also make the social network more friendly to the wallet experience.
Facebook has just announced another acquisition, this time involving a startup from Tel Aviv called Onavo, which has apps that include services that are designed to compress and monitor mobile data.
This could help Facebook to improve on two very meaningful levels.
As Facebook has been honing its mobile credentials to attract the spotlight, the services from Onavo apps could prove to be very helpful as it could help to encourage more marketers to shed their doubts and give the social network a try.
Equally, these apps could help to enhance Zuckerberg’s efforts with Internet.org.
The compression technology might assist the Internet.org program’s attempt to bring internet connectivity into regions that are out of reach for other forms. It could also make Facebook a realistic option within regions of the developing world where data consumption is considered to be a costly luxury. Moreover, it would shrink the roaming charges that would be applied to consumers in the rest of the world.
Beyond having been adopted as a new Facebook subsidiary, Onavo will also be converted into a Facebook satellite office in its home town in Israel, which will become the first time that the social network has had a direct presence in that country. At the moment, no information has been revealed regarding the amount of money that was involved in the acquisition, but there have been speculations ranging anywhere from $100 million to $200 million.
Onavo expressed in a blog post that “We’re excited to join their team, and hope to play a critical role in reaching one of Internet.org’s most significant goals – using data more efficiently, so that more people around the world can connect and share.” They also went on to add that “When the transaction closes, we plan to continue running the Onavo mobile utility apps as a standalone brand. As always, we remain committed to the privacy of people who use our application and that commitment will not change.” It has also been speculated that the tech will be integrated into the Facebook mobile applications in order to make them more efficient in terms of data consumption, as well.
