[concinds]

> you aren’t truly free to choose which app you download. You have to use the one

Singular? You'd just use whichever app a given person is on (everyone here has 3+ chat apps installed). Wouldn't network effects only kick in when group chats are involved?

[AAAAaccountAAAA]

Yes, and failing that, you could simply revert to plain old SMS. IMO, a better course of action would have been forcing Whatsapp to provide an alternative way to access their group chats.

Or alternatively, forcing all phones and carriers to support RCS as a condition for certification, and funding the development of a quality FOSS RCS client.