Social network Facebook and its WhatsApp messaging subsidiary have pulled their support for BlackBerry OS and BB10 devices and have even gone so far as to suggest users 'move to a newer device from Apple, Android or Windows phone by the end of 2016.' WhatsApp's statement is as follows.
As we look ahead to our next seven years, we want to focus our efforts on the mobile platforms the vast majority of people use. So, by the end of 2016, we will be ending support for WhatsApp Messenger on the following mobile platforms:
- BlackBerry, including BlackBerry 10
- Nokia S40
- Nokia Symbian S60
- Android 2.1 and Android 2.2
- Windows Phone 7.1
This isn't really surprising since developer support for BB10 has been dwindling due to lack of interest in a platform that is no longer profitable on a scale that competing platforms currently offer. BlackBerry, whose biggest launch last year was an Android-powered flagship smartphone, has reiterated their support for BB10 and for the devlopers that are continuing the good fight.
Our commitment to BlackBerry 10 and to developers has not changed – we know our developer community continues to be one of the strongest proponents of BlackBerry 10 and they are creating thousands of apps every month. As a way to support them and to promote new apps, we’re now featuring some of the best native applications on BlackBerry World in a list called “Great Apps on BlackBerry.”
To be honest, this may be too little, too late. When key apps are no longer supported on your platform, there's not much you can do to keep your customers from leaving for more current hardware and software solutions. Of course. there are many BlackBerry users who don't care much for these apps and just want their messaging and email on the go, so this does not affect them that much.