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If you’ve been following Apple news recently, it’s likely that you’ve heard the announcement that, as part of iOS 5, Apple will be introducing their own free iOS-to-iOS messaging service, called iMessage. 

iMessage is integrated directly into the Messages app on iPhone, and is also available on the iPad and iPod touch. 

If you’re an EirText user, this service may sound very similar to the EirText Push service that’s available in both the iOS and Mac versions of EirText (the latter being send-only). It is more or less identical. The obvious benefit is the integration with the Messages app - you’ll no longer have to jump back and forth between apps when sending and receiving push and SMS messages. In fact, iMessage will even determine whether to use SMS or push automatically - it’s seamless. 

So, what does this mean for EirText and it’s push service? Does this signal the end of webtext and push messaging apps?

In short, no, I don’t think so, and here’s why:

iOS-only. 

iMessage, while based on open standards, is currently iOS-only. Whether Apple will open the service up to third parties and other platforms remains to be seen - my guess is that this is highly unlikely. If iMessage does for iOS what BBM did for Blackberry, Apple will want to keep the service tied to their products alone. Despite the large number of iOS users worldwide, there will still be a large demand for free messaging to non-iOS users and webtext can fill this gap. 

Mac support.

EirText Push is available on the Mac and iMessage, currently, is not. However, Apple could very easily integrate iMessage into the iChat or FaceTime clients, so I wouldn’t rule this out from becoming a reality. 

Features. 

I’m reluctant to list this point, because the average user doesn’t care about features and specs. However, there will always be a small pocket of users who will need features like multiple account support, favourites, signatures and various other tweaks that aren’t available in the Messages app. EirText and other apps will fill that niche. 

So, with that in mind, I’ll leave you with two wise words of wisdom, made famous by the late Douglas Adams:

Don’t Panic.