Google celebrates 1 billion RCS users with emoji-filled messaging features

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Illustration showing chat bubbles and icons.
A handful of playful new RCS messaging features are debuting in open beta today. | Image: Google

November has been a big month for RCS — the mobile messaging protocol championed by Google — and now, the company is capping it off with the announcement of a milestone and some festive new features. First, the number: according to Google, over 1 billion monthly active users are using RCS in Google Messages. That’s huge considering support was scarce just a handful of years ago, though not entirely surprising since it’s been the default messaging service on Android phones for a few years now.

As for the new messaging features, a couple of them might sound familiar to iOS users. There’s a new feature that ties into your Google account to create a Contact Poster-like profile with your name and photo. Google is adding something called...

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source https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/30/23981350/google-messages-chat-rcs-apple-imessage-photo-emoji

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