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It enables users to access both SMS and Facebook messages within one application | Image Credit: Unsplash
Facebook Messenger is set to discontinue its support for sending SMS messages via cellular networks. The messaging platform, owned by Meta, integrated SMS functionality into its Android app in 2016, enabling users to access both SMS and Facebook messages within one application. SMS messages were denoted by a purple colour, while Messenger conversations appeared in blue. However, this integration is now being phased out, coinciding with the recent return of the message inbox feature to the main Facebook app.
According to a Facebook Messenger support page, Meta will cease SMS message support on the Messenger app for Android on September 28. The change will take effect following user app updates. Subsequently, Messenger users won’t be able to send or receive SMS messages through the app; instead, they’ll have to rely on their device’s default messaging app.
Meta clarified that if users fail to select a new default messaging app, SMS messages will automatically be stored in Google Messages. Notably, SMS messages appear in purple, while Facebook Messenger conversations are displayed in blue within the app. Users have the option to manually switch to alternatives like Google Messages or their smartphone manufacturer’s SMS app, such as Samsung’s, before the September 28 deadline.
Facebook introduced Messenger’s SMS integration in 2016, aiming to compete with Apple’s iMessage and Google’s Android Messages. Those who set Messenger as their default app could access SMS and Facebook messages within the same platform.
This update follows Meta’s announcement of the message inbox feature’s return to the Facebook app, allowing content sharing through messages without requiring the Messenger app. Meta noted that its messaging apps collectively handle over 140 billion messages daily.