Will all AT&T and Verizon continue to drag their feet on RCS? Almost definitely. T-Mobile made that deal with Google instead. But the end of the CCMI is a sign that carriers might just be implementing more consumer-friendly RCS policies, not that they’re walking away entirely. I will be the first in line to tell you that the rollout for RCS took what should have been a coordinated six-month effort that was a win for both carriers and Google and turned it into a multi-year slog that didn’t help anybody, least of all consumers. It has even begun testing end-to-end-encryption over RCS inside Android messages. It made RCS available to anybody on any carrier if they used Android Messages as their SMS app. However, Google has plodded along with its plan, making piece-by-piece efforts to broaden RCS adoption. Phones that should be compatible weren’t, carriers that promised their RCS would interoperate with others didn’t build those systems, and Apple continued to stay absolutely silent on whether it would support RCS (and it continues to stay silent to this day). The rollout for RCS worldwide - and especially in the US - has been terribly slow and even more terribly confusing.

Reached for comment by The Verge, AT&T gave us a nearly identical statement. From The Verge: AT&T and Google have announced that all Android phones on the network will use Google’s Android Messages app for SMS and RCS services. However, the owners remain committed to enhancing the messaging experience for customers including growing the availability of RCS. The owners of the Cross Carrier Messaging Initiative decided to end the joint venture effort. But while Synchronoss’ comment was noncommittal, Verizon and AT&T are now just telling it like it is. Light Reading reached out to the third-party vendor, Synchronoss, that was originally going to handle the back-end logistics for the CCMI app (RCS can be run through a carrier’s server, Google’s server, or a third-party server). Then, last month, T-Mobile announced a huge deal with Google that included switching Android phones over to Android Messages as the default RCS/SMS app. That acquisition happened and the one carrier that seemed enthusiastic for CCMI was subsumed into another. The CCMI promised a custom Android app from the carriers Plus, T-Mobile was barreling down the path towards acquiring Sprint. All the carriers seemed too busy hyping up 5G to give any real attention to the CCMI. However, after that announcement there was precious little information or movement. Google was not part of the CCMI announcement, either, which was very strange given that Google is by far the biggest booster for the standard. If you’ve ever used an app designed by a major US carrier, you know that’s a recipe for a bad experience. But the bad part was the consortium planned on creating an Android app themselves for messaging features. At the time, any effort by carriers to support proper cross-compatibility in RCS was a good sign. It initially seemed like a mixed bag of news. The CCMI was launched in 2019 and by all indications was a joint effort that was spearheaded by Sprint. Whether or not they will replace it with a good plan remains, as ever with RCS, to be seen. But while that might seem like bad news on the face of it, what it actually means is that carriers have given up on a bad plan that would have been bad for consumers. The CCMI was meant to be a joint effort to promote RCS, the next-generation messaging standard designed to replace SMS. When using Verizon Messages (Message+) outside of the US, Global Data charges will apply.According to the telecom industry news site Light Reading, the big three US carriers are walking away from the Cross Carrier Messaging Initiative. You'll be billed at data rates for sending and receiving attachments that are 5 MB or larger (unless you're on Wi-Fi), according to your messaging and data plans with Verizon or your wireless provider. If you're not a Verizon customer: You'll be billed under your own provider's messaging and data plans. Kanvas images/editing, administrative features including (auto-reply, muted/unmuted conversations, Scheduled Messages, updating group details, and public profile updates).Calls on linked secondary devices using Integrated Calling (such as your watch or tablet).Use of other features, including the following, will count against your data allowance (unless you’re using Wi-Fi): If you have Verizon service: Sending and receiving texts (including images, audio, video under 5 MB, etc.) will be billed according to your messaging allowance, not your data allowance. Data charges may apply when downloading and using certain features of Verizon Messages (Message+).

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