From Apple's perspective, yes. Social pressure to buy Apple devices to use Apple's messaging app is part of Apple's marketing strategy.
Apple also claims that blocking devices by serial number or similar unique hardware identifiers is a key part of its anti-spam strategy. If true, an end-run around that will likely create problems for users as well.
The creator of this is screwing things up for everyone. If it was an obscure, open source project Apple would probably let it slide and we’d be able to enjoy this indefinitely. This has been the case for Hackintosh stuff and the like.
But no, the author had to make a dumb, flashy looking website that looks like they’re advertising a product built around reverse engineered Apple tech. I bet they get a Cease and Desist by the end of the week and the hole is patched shortly after.
The current state of affairs re encryption is an accident of history that I would bet doesn’t last much longer once Apple gets formally involved.
“Apple says it won't be supporting any proprietary extensions that seek to add encryption on top of RCS and hopes, instead, to work with the GSM Association to add encryption to the standard.”
Apple also claims that blocking devices by serial number or similar unique hardware identifiers is a key part of its anti-spam strategy. If true, an end-run around that will likely create problems for users as well.