Google Voice for iPhone updated; adds multi-recipient texting, Sprint support and more
Google has pushed live a new update for its Google Voice iPhone application, bringing iPhone users up to speed with features that have been present in its Android equivalent.
Context & Ripple Effects
Google Voice has been on a slow march from invitation-only curiosity to mainstream service: Google opened the service to everyone in June 2010, then shipped a native iPhone app that November after a long stretch in which iPhone users were limited to web-based workarounds. This update is the next step in that arc — and notably, it is a catch-up move, bringing multi-recipient texting and other features to iOS that have already shipped on Android.
The Sprint support is the more strategically interesting piece: a major US carrier is integrating with an over-the-top service that routes calls and texts around the carrier's own numbering and messaging products, rather than treating Google Voice as a threat to be blocked.
First-order effects
- iPhone users get feature parity with their Android counterparts on multi-recipient texting, removing one of the practical reasons to treat Google Voice as an Android-first service.
- Sprint customers gain direct Google Voice integration on iOS, letting them use the service without juggling separate numbers or workarounds.
Second-order effects
- Sprint's accommodation sets a reference point for rival carriers deciding whether to fight or partner with over-the-top calling and messaging services that erode per-message revenue.
- Cross-platform parity lowers the switching cost between iOS and Android for users anchored to Google's communication stack, weakening one form of platform lock-in.
Third-order effects
- If carrier partnerships like Sprint's become the norm, the voice-and-text layer migrates from carrier-controlled infrastructure to app-layer services, with carriers competing on data pipes and integration terms instead of messaging features.
The trend: Carrier-integrated over-the-top communication services are shifting voice and texting value from network operators toward cross-platform software layers like Google Voice.