Samsung launches cross-platform group messaging service for smartphones, tablets and laptops

Samsung is so eager to serve itself a large slice of the group messaging app pie that it is launching a free messaging service, called ChatON, that will run on all major platforms.

The group messaging space is hot right now and Apple, Google, RIM, Facebook and Skype are all trying to woo users to their services with new or enhanced group messaging apps and features.

Samsung is trying to outdo the likes of RIM's BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) by making its ChatON service available to users on all major platforms including Android, Bada (Samsung’s mobile OS) and iOS. The service won’t just be limited to smartphone users either.

"It will be available gradually across all devices such as smartphones, tablets and laptops after the showcase at IFA 2011 in September," said Samsung.

ChatON will let users in more than 120 countries and across 62 languages chat in groups and share text messages, images, hand-written notes and video with their friends instantly.

The service will be rolled out at approximately the same time as Apple’s own group messaging solution iMessage, which will be launched as part of iOS 5.

Samsung will demo ChatON at the IFA consumer electronics conference and expo which will be held this week in Berlin, Germany from September 2 to 7. IFA press days will be held on August 31 and September 1.

http://www.ifa-berlin.com