Facebook recently announced that it is dropping its support for the BlackBerry 10 operating system, joining WhatsApp which announced the same plan last month. The social networking giant's messaging platform, Messenger, will also follow suit in cutting ties with the struggling smartphone manufacturer.
WhatsApp, a company owned by Facebook, debuted on the BlackBerry platform way back in 2013. In February, the instant messaging client announced that it will cease to support BlackBerry 10 by the end of the year. WhatsApp also announced that it will stop supporting old operating systems like Symbian S60, Symbian S40 and a handful of old versions of Android.
Just like WhatsApp, Facebook and Messenger will no longer support BlackBerry 10 by the end of the year, according to ZDNet. On the other hand, BlackBerry devices running on the Android platform, like the BlackBerry Priv, will still be supported. Facebook will only drop its support on the BlackBerry 10 operating system and not the whole BlackBerry hardware.
In a statement posted on BlackBerry's official blog, the company said, "We are extremely disappointed in their decision as we know so many users love these aps. We fought back to work with WhatsApp and Facebook to change their minds, but at this time, their decision stands."
The Menlo Park-based tech giant claims that 99.5 percent of smartphone sales are divided among mobile operating systems from Apple, Microsoft and Google. On the other hand, BlackBerry tried to save its business by incorporating itself into the Android platform. The company released its first Android-based smartphone, the Priv, in November 2015.
BlackBerry 10 users can still access Facebook and Messenger through their mobile web version. However, tech experts are skeptical whether the mobile web version of the two services will appeal to users.
Market analysts believe that Facebook's decision to drop support for the BlackBerry 10 operating system could spell some serious sales trouble for the already struggling Canada-based company.
For BlackBerry users, some tech experts have a nifty workaround as the BlackBerry 10 operating system still supports some Android apps which can be downloaded from the Amazon app store. Tech experts suggest that BlackBerry users can download and use the Facebook and Messenger Android app instead.