Gone are the days when SMSes were ubiquitous. Everybody now says Whatsapp me. What’s more? All you need is a smartphone and a data connection. Reason is, things that these new IM platforms provide are way above the capabilities that conventional messaging can deliver. For giants like Google who are building devices that work in unison, having a messaging platform that works in sync is more or less a necessity.
Google’s messaging is already in wrecks with separate chat lists across its platforms like Gmail, Google Plus and Talk. Video calling is not available in desktop Talk app. Not to mention the Group chat feature, which if required has to be accessed via web app. They desperately need to have a hold in IM sector.
There is already news that Google might be starting a unified communications feature by the name Babble. What wonders me is why they chose to buy Whatsapp? Google already has a strong following in Google Talk – that is also supported via Gmail and Plus. Of course, they could be looking to buy Whatsapp for its user base, which by the way is a very good reason to do so. Other than that, what other features are they worried about in Whatsapp that they find difficult to replicate? I’m not sure. If they are looking to do the acquisition for the latter reason, I wouldn’t be so optimistic about the whole buy out thing.
But, wait. All these are speculations doing the rounds. Let’s not get so excited about the whole news, until we have something concrete to talk about.