Facebook has launched a new instant-messaging application for smartphones to compete with similar services such as WhatsApp and BlackBerry Messenger, as the booming market for chat apps threatens mobile operators’ traditional revenues.
Research in Motion’s BlackBerry Messenger – known as BBM – leapt to prominence this week after it emerged as an organisational tool used by rioters and looters in London, due to its popularity among British teenagers and ability instantly to send private messages to large groups of friends.
Some analysts are concerned that operators’ voice and text revenues could get hit if consumers increasingly use instant messaging, especially outside “bundled” SMS and calling time.
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