Blackberry Messenger, an app commonly known as BBM, has already made rounds of success on iOS and Android. After unexpected delays, the application made its way to the App Store and Google Play Store, which was well received by users. During its initial launch, the company managed to rack up 10 million downloads during the first 24 hours, with the numbers inflating to 20 million after a week with Android and iOS combined.
If you’re a Windows Phone user, anxiously waiting for the application to make an official appearance in the Windows Phone Store, you be disappointed to know that it’s not coming anytime soon. Blackberry has confirmed to the folks at TrustedReviews that it has no plans at the moment to bring BBM to Windows Phone, citing lack of consumer demand — despite the fact that Windows Phone is the third major mobile OS. Many popular applications such as Instagram and Vine have made their way to the Redmond’s mobile operating system, but it seems they are not enough to convince the Canadian OEM.
“It [the continuing lack of a BBM Windows Phone app] is entirely market driven. Our initial launch on iOS and Android was a function of the prevalence of those platforms,” David Proulx, BlackBerry’s Senior Director of BBM Business Development said while speaking with TrustedReviews.
This should solve any confusion users may have about the launch of BBM on Windows Phone, as the company doesn’t have the application in the pipeline, but it doesn’t mean they won’t launch it in the future. Proulx further stated, “As other platforms emerge, whichever they may be, we will execute on those platforms as well.”
“It is not a statement of intent, and it’s not a strategic or religious thing, it’s just a function of when does it make sense and when is it something that consumers demand in sufficient numbers to make it worth our while and worth their while,” Proulx added.
Coming over to the numbers on iOS and Android, they do seem impressive, but I still have one question in mind: how many of those millions of users are still using the application? There was so much hype when the application made its official appearance back in October last year, and it seems logical that everyone would install the application at least once, I did the same and uninstalled after a few days not because it wasn’t good, but because there are other decent alternatives available — WhatsApp, for example, is available on all the major platforms, not just iOS and Android.
Have your say on this. Are you waiting for BBM to hit the Windows Phone Store? Fire away with your thoughts.
