Looking back at the last 10 years of BBM

This week marks an important milestone. Saturday is the 10th anniversary of the birth of BBM, and it has left many of us reflecting on how far we’ve come. What started as a simple PIN-to-PIN, text-only, BlackBerry smartphone instant messaging solution has become a thriving, cross-platform global social network with text, visual and animated messages, money transfer options, secure video meetings, and an incredibly engaged community.

As part of the week-long celebration, we’ve asked the team about their favorite milestones and moments. Here are some of the most impactful events in BBM history:

• August 1, 2005: Birth of BlackBerry Messenger
• August 2009:
  • GPS location integrated with BBM
  • BBM adds PIN barcode scanning
  • Introduced Streamlined voice notes and Animated Display Picture first on mobile device
• July 28, 2011: BBM 6 Launches with Connected Apps
• November 2, 2011: BBM Music Beta Launches
• September 13, 2012: BBM Enters the Collins English Dictionary
• December 10, 2012: BBM Voice Launches with BBM7 Update
• October 22, 2013: BBM Goes Cross Platform
• November 26, 2013: BBM Channels Launches
• April 1, 2014: BBM Stickers Launches
• November 20, 2014: BBM Meetings Launches
• January 7, 2015: BBM Supports Android Wearables
• February, 2015: BBM Shop Hits 1 Billion Views
• March 4, 2015: BBM Hits 100M Google Play Installs
• June 26, 2015: Private Chat Introduced
• July 3, 2015: BBM Gets Android Material Design Makeover
• August 1, 2015: BBM Celebrates its 10th Birthday

by Matthew Talbot via Inside BlackBerry