Android, iPhone, and Blackberry smartphone users can now access Blackberry's Messenger Service voice calling and BBM channel features on their own devices.
According to a company press release, these consumers and now also send files, photos, to their contacts and let them know their locations on the devices. There are also more than 100 previously unreleased emoticons. Dropbox integration for the devices are also available.
"BBM continues to deliver new functionality as a premier messaging platform that provides a simple and effective way to stay connected," John Sims, president of Global Enterprise solutions at Blackberry said in a statement.
"Today's announcement gives Android and iPhone customers the rich experience of BBM Voice and BBM Channels - two great ways to connect with friends, family and colleagues, to build out communities around shared interests, and to follow your favorite people and brands," Sims said in the statement. "BBM continues to quickly evolve as a social mobile platform for consumers as well as for business customers through innovative features that give you great new ways to connect and share with each other," Sims said in the statement.
BBM has been a successful program for Blackberry. It recently hit a record 10 million downloads 24 hours after its release on Android and iPhone smartphones October 21 the company said on its official blog.
Users can now also locate friends without entering a pin via a new Find a Friend option.
Blackberry lost $646 million, last year, when its revenue significantly decreased 40 percent to $11 billion The Wall Street Journal reported. This year, the company lost four million subscribers and suffered another decrease of $84 million in the fiscal quarter that ended June 1.
Blackberry made a smaller amount of cuts over the summer from its sales, and research, and development departments The Journal reported. This comes just a year after the company let go 5,000 people.
Blackberry had 12,700 employees as of March, which was the last time it revealed a total number. Two years ago, over 17,000 employees worked at the company based in Waterloo, Ontorio Canada. Blackberry also had control of 14 percent of the smartphone business. This has since dropped to less than three percent.
