A while back, RIM made a statement claiming that they had no plans of bringing their BBM service over to other platforms (although there were rumors that suggested otherwise). At that time it was understandable given that BBM was one of the features that set Blackberry devices apart from other platforms. However with apps such as Whatsapp that allows for cross-platform message and iOS 5’s iMessage, BBM is facing some stiff competition, but thanks to a leaked screenshot, perhaps RIM may have a change of heart and may be porting BBM over to Android.
As you can see in the photo above, there’s a BBM app icon on the Android menu screen. This photo (courtesy of TechRadar), is said to have been sent in from a RIM employee claiming that the app is currently in its final stages of testing. For those who are looking forward to sending BBM messages to their Blackberry friends from their Android devices, the RIM employee has also stated that the app should be available come 2012.
Naturally we can’t verify the authenticity of these screenshots as they could easily be photoshopped, and to be honest this isn’t the most convincing “leaked” screenshot that we have seen so far, so let’s take this with a huge handfuls of salt. However we have to ask, with apps such as Whatsapp available on Blackberry, iOS, Android and Windows Phone 7, would anyone really want to download/purchase a BBM app?
Filed in . Read more about Android, Apps, BBM, BlackBerry, Blackberry Messenger, Leaked, RIM and Screenshot.