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FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

theverge.com

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Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#271

Post by simondotau »

lurkerasdfh8 wrote: post #237
bottled_poe wrote: post #227

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> We can't have facetime for android because that will remove the barrier for families to buy Android phones for their kids I might be missing something... Is there something in this that is illegal?

> illegal besides being immoral and a literal F-U to your consumers, it can bring anti trust cases when you are as big as Apple. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vendor_lock-in But other than that, well, just go celebrate your $2 gain on your APPL stocks despite the fact you were prohibited to call 50% of your friends just so someone couldn't save a few bucks when buying a phone for their teenage kid. Go you!

I think it's funny that Android users are so angry with Apple for not releasing iMessage and FaceTime for Android. How dare Apple not make their communications platforms even more dominant! Not having iMessage on Android is immoral! Not having FaceTime on Android is "a literal F-U" to their customers!

I think it's funny because Apple left a decade-long opening for Google to build equally good Android alternatives to iMessage and FaceTime and dominate in cross-platform communication. Instead, twelve chat platforms later, I'm not entirely sure if Google has finally released something that won't be superseded next year.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#272

Post by simondotau »

nixy wrote: post #269
lurkerasdfh8 wrote: post #237

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> illegal besides being immoral and a literal F-U to your consumers, it can bring anti trust cases when you are as big as Apple. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vendor_lock-in But other than that, well, just go celebrate your $2 gain on your APPL stocks despite the fact you were prohibited to call 50% of your friends just so someone couldn't save a few bucks when buying a phone for their teenage kid. Go you!

To be honest, it is more a F-U to your competitors' customers than to your own. I don't get why Apple creating a feature for their own ecosystem has to be made available to other ecosystems as well. It's not like Face Time is the only video calling solution out there.

The way Android users complain about the lack of Apple iMessage and Apple FaceTime on their phones, you'd be forgiven for questioning whether Android had any messaging or video calling features.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#273

Post by gman83 »

simondotau wrote: post #271
lurkerasdfh8 wrote: post #237

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> illegal besides being immoral and a literal F-U to your consumers, it can bring anti trust cases when you are as big as Apple. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vendor_lock-in But other than that, well, just go celebrate your $2 gain on your APPL stocks despite the fact you were prohibited to call 50% of your friends just so someone couldn't save a few bucks when buying a phone for their teenage kid. Go you!

I think it's funny that Android users are so angry with Apple for not releasing iMessage and FaceTime for Android. How dare Apple not make their communications platforms even more dominant! Not having iMessage on Android is immoral! Not having FaceTime on Android is "a literal F-U" to their customers! I think it's funny because Apple left a decade-long opening for Google to build equally good Android alternatives to…

In Europe at least, I'm very unhappy that neither Google or Apple has managed to create any form of standard communications platform, because now instead of one of those two, everyone uses WhatsApp from Facebook, which I personally hate using but am obliged to if I want any kind of social life. If Apple had created Android versions of their messaging products, their own users wouldn't be forced into Facebook's arms.

Before you say, "just don't use it", here are some examples. My kids parents/school group uses WhatsApp, same as my kids sports club to organize matches/training. I'm a volunteer for a local association -- WhatsApp group. I really have little choice in using it.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#274

Post by Aissen »

skunkworker wrote: post #56
twobitshifter wrote: post #28

Steve Jobs notably said FaceTime was built to be an open standard when he introduced it on June 7, 2010 .

It's suspected that this was thwarted by the VirnetX lawsuit. And Apple had to do a "design around" [2]. https://www.cnet.com/news/steve-jobs-promised-to-make-faceti... [2] https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/08/report-after-pat...

We now know this is false: https://www.theverge.com/2021/4/27/22406303/imessage-android...

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#275

Post by JumpCrisscross »

tptacek wrote: post #247
JumpCrisscross wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Signal: requires disclosing a phone number to everyone you use it with Signal also got distracted with a cryptocurrency scheme [1]. That shot their credibility in many circles. [1] https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2021/04/wtf-signal-ad...

First, the "also" is misplaced. Signal's telephone number requirement is a privacy feature; it's not that Signal wants your phone number, but that using phone numbers as identifiers allows them to build a social graph --- every mainstream messaging app involves a social graph --- without keeping plaintext contact lists serverside, which is what every other mainstream messenger does. That's not a small thing; the info…

Fair on both points. The “also” is misplaced as most users have zero problem with Signal processing their contacts. And “shot their credibility” was hyperbole. “Severely damaged, albeit repairably” is more accurate.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#276

Post by floatingatoll »

SilverRed wrote: post #162
floatingatoll wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My theory is that FaceTime calls can only be initiated/scheduled from an Apple device. That prevents most of the spam problem, since you won’t be able to initiate a call through web.

This also boosts value for ios users more than the rest. It means an ios user can facetime anyone rather than only ios users while an android users still has to rely on an alternative solution.

I’m sure if they could kill global phone networks with FaceTime for everyone they would, but I think that they’re solving spam by blocking any device that spans using a serial number or secure UUID or something that iOS can’t fake, rooted or unroofed — but their web solution can’t access such data to provide a hardware-baked identifier to ban for spamming.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#278

Post by Grustaf »

lurkerasdfh8 wrote: post #237
bottled_poe wrote: post #227

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> We can't have facetime for android because that will remove the barrier for families to buy Android phones for their kids I might be missing something... Is there something in this that is illegal?

> illegal besides being immoral and a literal F-U to your consumers, it can bring anti trust cases when you are as big as Apple. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vendor_lock-in But other than that, well, just go celebrate your $2 gain on your APPL stocks despite the fact you were prohibited to call 50% of your friends just so someone couldn't save a few bucks when buying a phone for their teenage kid. Go you!

How is it immoral to not actively support your competitor's hardware with your software and services? Of course it isn't, iMessage is not a utility, it's not a public good. You can still text or make voice calls to anyone you want, or even video calls using dozens of third party apps.

They have no moral obligation at all to extend their own first party services to Android, that's an absurd idea.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#279

Post by amelius »

butz wrote: post #74

Let's hope that FaceTime will work on Firefox too.

It would be nice if someday opensource would get some official recognition. Because right now, hoping that something will work is the only thing we can do, even for government websites and apps.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#280

Post by DevKoala »

dingaling wrote: post #261
gyc wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apple is already on the hook for about a billion dollars to VirnetX. That's not a lame excuse at all.

VirnetX Market cap: 356.004M Apple could offer every shareholder ten times the market value and end the problem.

What makes you think they would sell when it is more profitable to milk their patents?
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