Degrading to the lowest common denominator is what an interoperable standard is supposed to accomplish. The alternative is for iMessage to entirely decline SMS usage in group chats.
Technically that's accurate, but that does nothing for the social stigma of being that one guy who makes the chat suck for everyone else just by being present
> social stigma of being that one guy who makes the chat suck for everyone else just by being present
I have been trying to parse this. You do understand that for some people (like me), I explicitly DO NOT want an iPhone, right? It isn't I cannot afford it, I do not want it. The reason the chat "sucks for everyone else" is because Apple doesn't open up the protocol. Don't blame me for not wanting an iPhone.
Back when Microsoft used to adopt interoperable standards and make modifications to it to kill the standard, people here rightfully called that behaviour evil. Apple get's a pass for doing the same for SMS.
There's nothing inherently evil to EEE. Plenty of software and standards have benefited from it (e.g. Linux, Ethernet, USB, PCIe, Thunderbolt, Bluetooth). The question as whether EEE is "bad" is a matter of motive. Edit: Is it being done solely because there's money to be made in locking down the tech to certain platforms or because there's a superior or more convenient solution?
iMessage has been on phones for 11 years and so far Apple hasn't gone out of its way to pull the plug on SMS. Apple doesn't seem to have an active desire to extinguish it either. Other companies have put a more serious effort in that regard: Google has RCS, Signal has its own unfederated protocol, and various companies have their own messaging platforms (e.g. Telegram, Discord, WhatsApp).