Bloomberg reports right now in an exclusive disclosure that the EU is not going to design iMessage for the Apple iPhone as a "gatekeeper" service.
“Not popular enough for businesses”
This means that they escape a number of requirements, including opening the service to competitors. The reason is apparently not the RCS implementation that will come in the first or second quarter of 2024, but that iMessage is not popular enough for businesses.
Bloomberg reports that the EU has not decided 100 percent correctly yet, but that they are "leaning towards" not including the service in this way. Neither the EU nor Apple has currently wished to comment on the scoop. The EU will not reach a conclusion until February, after they have spent five months assessing the matter.
Apple revealed on November 16 that “as we expected, RCS will work in combination with iMessage, which Apple unsurprisingly believes is the “best and safest” method for sending instant messages .”