Samsung South Africa welcomes BBM

20 Sep 2013

Samsung has confirmed that when BBM (BlackBerry Messenger), the mobile social network launches for Android smartphones on the 21 September 2013, it will be available as a free download for Samsung GALAXY smartphones across South Africa from the Google Play store.

"We are pleased to officially announce that BBM will be available for Samsung GALAXY smartphones across South Africa," said George Ferreira, VP and COO of Samsung Electronics Africa.

"We are focused on driving consumer experiences based on customisation to suit every lifestyle. By offering an additional messaging service through our Samsung Messaging Hub, it has never been easier to stay connected. This is another way that we are providing our customers with a more integrated lifestyle experience and a powerful new way of communicating and sharing. It's really about giving the South African market what they want - and what they want is choice."

Samsung users will join a community of approximately 60 million BlackBerry smartphones customers who rely on BBM to stay in touch with friends, family and colleagues every day. Samsung GALAXY smartphone users will have access to an extensive range of BBM features, including BBM chats and multi-person chats with BBM Groups, as well as the ability to share photos and voice notes. BBM will form part of Samsung's Messaging Hub as a complementary addition to the current slate of propriety and third party messaging services that Samsung customers enjoy.

"We are excited to welcome Samsung customers in South Africa to the global BBM community," said Andrew Bocking, executive vice president for BBM at BlackBerry.

"Samsung customers will enjoy the conversational immediacy that BBM offers with the distinctive 'R' that lets you know your message has been read. They'll also be pleased with the control BBM gives them over their contact lists and how they share their information. Every BBM customer gets a unique PIN, so you don't have to give out your phone number or email address to a new or casual contact."

BBM for Android can be downloaded for free from the Google Play Store on 21 September 2013 and is compatible with GALAXY smartphone devices that run Android 4.0 (Ice-Cream Sandwich) and above.

Data charges may apply, as determined by local operators and service providers.