Blackberry BBM is not exclusive to Samsung, It is for all MAN-KIND

BlackBerry clarifies that its standalone messaging app is coming to Android and Apple users and counters Samsung's claims that it will be exclusive to its handsets.

By opening up the app, this conversation can now flow across handsets and ecosystems, but on Monday, Samsung Nigeria tweeted that when BBM lands on the Android platform on September 20 it will be exclusive to Samsung Galaxy device owners until the end of 2013.

BlackBerry had been very quiet on the subject, confirming only that a platform-specific version of the app had been submitted to the Apple App Store platform for consideration at the beginning of September -- a process that usually takes roughly four days. However, following Samsung's tweet, the company issued a statement via the CrackBerry jorum in an attempt to clear up the mounting confusion. "The excitement around the upcoming BBM launch on iPhone and Android devices seems to know no bounds. Although I'm a big fan of this passion, I want to clarify that no one will have an exclusive on offering BBM. We'll be bringing the app to Android and iPhone users across the globe soon," said BlackBerry spokesperson Victoria Berry.

The app, when it does finally arrive on Google Play, is expected to need to run on a device with Android version 4.1 (Ice Cream Sandwich) or version 4.2 (Jelly Bean) installed in order to work. The Apple version will be optimized for iOS 6, the version that over 90 % of iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices currently run. = hindustantimes

BlackBerry has quelled rumours around when BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) will arrive on Android and iOS, committing to releasing it over the weekend.

Earlier in the week, Samsung Nigeria let the news leak on Twitter that BBM would be available on its devices from September 20. That appears to have been a day off, with BlackBerry today confirming that BBM will be available on Android on September 21 and iPhone on September 22.

BlackBerry also made no mention of the rumour that Samsung had secured a three-month exclusive to have BBM on its devices only. Instead, the statement from the company says that it will be available for Android smartphones running Ice Cream Sandwich and Jelly Bean.

Similarly, in the Apple camp, iOS 6 and 7 are the supported mobile operating systems.