Last evening, Tim Cook shot down the potential for fixing the inexperienced bubble drawback — and he revealed the actual cause why Apple gained’t do it: it doesn’t promote iPhones.

At Vox Media’s Code convention, an attendee informed Cook that it was tough for him to ship movies to his mother as a result of Apple units don’t help RCS, the texting protocol championed by Google and supported by main telephone carriers. Cook, in response, advised the attendee purchase his mother an iPhone. “I don’t hear our users asking that we put a lot of energy in on that at this point,” Cook stated.

This appears to be the primary time Cook has publicly addressed RCS, the Rich Communications Services protocol. RCS is a serious enchancment over SMS and MMS, letting you do issues like ship higher-quality pictures and movies, and it might repair lots of the points you run into when texting between Apple and Android units. But Apple has to this point kept away from providing help, and the excellence between iMessage’s blue bubbles and common textual content message’s inexperienced ones has remained a thorn in Google’s aspect.

Apple has intentionally chosen to make a superior texting expertise through iMessage an Apple-only factor — and Cook’s feedback on Wednesday converse to that selection. For years, it’s been a key a part of Apple’s technique to lock in customers to its platforms. Emails revealed as a part of Epic Games v. Apple confirmed prime execs like Craig Federighi (in 2013) and Phil Schiller (in 2016) making the case that bringing iMessage to Android wouldn’t profit Apple. Eddy Cue testified in a deposition that Apple might have made an Android model of iMessage that was appropriate with iOS, however that clearly hasn’t been publicly launched.

By making iMessage an Apple-only product — and by persevering with to enhance it with options like the flexibility to edit and unsend messages — Apple could make the case that one of the best ways to message your mates is on an Apple machine utilizing Apple’s messaging app. While the corporate might theoretically undertake RCS and hold iMessage on Apple units, it advantages by creating as a lot separation as potential between textual content messaging throughout Apple and Android. That means extra individuals will purchase extra iPhones.

Google has been campaigning exhausting in current months for Apple to undertake RCS. Google has applied it in Android, in fact, and it’s additionally now supported by AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon (after a really gradual rollout). And given that every one three have dedicated to creating Google’s Android messaging app the default texting for Android telephones they promote, it’s more likely that individuals will simply textual content over RCS with out excited about it.

Google SVP Hiroshi Lockheimer has led the cost, joking that there’s a “Really Clear Solution” to messaging struggles and saying that Apple is “holding back” clients who textual content. The firm additionally not too long ago launched an internet site, “Get The Message,” to strive shaming Apple into adopting RCS.

Lockheimer understands Apple’s resistance to RCS, “but people should be able to send high quality videos and photos to their mom without having to buy her a new phone,” he said. Cook, it appears, disagrees.