Blackberry expands BBM chat app to Android and iOS

The Blackberry Messenger (BBM) app is to be offered as a download to run on rival platforms.

Blackberry said it would initially offer texts, photo messages and group sharing functions on devices running Google's Android and Apple's iOS operating systems from "the summer".
It added it planned to roll out screen sharing, voice and video calls - all without charge - later in the year.

The move could effect badly to Skype, Whatsapp and other rivals.

Blackberry chief executive Thorsten Heins revealed the surprise news at the end of his presentation at the firm's annual developers conference in Orlando, Florida.

The company said that more than 60 million Blackberry owners already used BBM at least once a month.

Source: BBC Posted by Unknown 5/15/2013