Remember when we all watched those big TV’s? They were big, heavy and you had to get two people just to carry the thing. Remember teletext? Oh how we laughed….
In those old days we used something called “BBM” which people, who owned BlackBerry handsets, used to communicate with each other. Of course, we’ve since found that there’s a few other instant messaging apps, like err.. WhatsApp and.. errmm.. Jabber, Facebook Messenger, Viber, Skype, Google Talk, Yahoo! Messenger, eBuddy and ICQ. Oh yes, and you could possibly use one of your 400 billion text messages from your bundle.
Those six million people can now start downloading the app and talk to the six hundred people actually using the app (sorry, sorry, I’ll stop now).
This is the news you’ve been waiting for! I am thrilled to tell you that we are about to officially resume our rollout of BBM for Android and iPhone customers around the globe!* In the next few hours, people will start seeing BBM in Google Play, the App Store and in select Samsung App Stores – where it will be free to download.
The demand for BBM on Android and BBM on iPhone continues to be amazing. About six million people signed up for information about BBM at BBM.com. As you know, in just seven hours, about one million Android users were using the unreleased version of BBM for Android. What you don’t know is that more than one million people have found creative ways to “side load” BBM on their iPhone. This is incredible.
To help manage this unprecedented pent up demand for BBM, we are implementing a simple line-up system to ensure a smooth roll out. Here’s how it is going to work…
BBM Roll Out Details:
Download BBM – the easiest way is to visit BBM.com from your Android or iPhone browser*
Once you install the app, open it, and enter your email address to hold your spot in line
We will email you as soon as you reach the front of the line and can start using BBM
If you are among the millions that took the time to sign up at BBM.com, you can start using BBM immediately without waiting in line.* If you didn’t sign up in advance, don’t worry – we are focused on moving millions of customers through the line as fast as possible.
Our team of developers and engineers has been working around the clock to bring you BBM – and make some upgrades while we’re at it – and some incredible work has been done. I look forward to sharing more of this with you here, on Inside BlackBerry, soon.
For updates on how quickly the line is moving you can follow @BBM on Twitter. I will be back tomorrow with another post to provide you with an update on the line-up and to share more detail about the work the team has done over the last several weeks.
Lastly, thank you for your patience. We know you’re excited (we are too!) and we look forward to having you join us on BBM.
*Samsung customers in Sub-Sahara Africa can download BBM today from the Samsung Apps store. iPhone and other Android users in Africa will be able to download the app in three days’ time.
