Messaging
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Communication platform Layer raises $15M and acquires interactive messaging startup Cola
Layer, the messaging platform that won TechCrunch’s Startup Battlefield back in 2013, is making two big announcements today: It’s raised $15 million in Series B funding, and it’s acquiring another startup, Cola. Layer makes it easy for businesses to add messaging capabilities to their iOS, Android and web products — customers include Trunk Club, Staples and Udacity.… Read More
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RCS, Google’s answer to iMessage, expands to 27 more carriers and OEMs
While messaging apps like WhatsApp, Messenger, Snapchat and WeChat rake in ever more users, features and relationships with key brands, and Apple’s iMessage continues to play strong with iPhone users, Google today announced a big step forward in its own strategy to bring a native, enhanced, native messaging service to more Android devices — a play for Google to help carriers… Read More
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The enterprise is the next logical step for Slack
Slack took a big step in its evolution as a startup yesterday when it launched Slack Enterprise Grid, the enterprise version of its popular messaging platform.
For Slack to continue its growth trajectory, it had to move on from being a tool for discrete teams to one that could deal with substantially more users, and provide some security and governance as it connected to other departments… Read More
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The new Google Voice launches, bringing a modern look, group chat, photo sharing & more
Confirming reports from earlier this month that a Google Voice update was in the works, Google today has launched a refreshed version of its VoIP calling service on mobile and the web. Largely, the update is about giving the product a more modern look-and-feel, after having not received a major upgrade in years. But the relaunch also includes a few new features, like support for… Read More
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Symphony, the messaging app backed by Wall St, is raising at a $1B+ valuation
Symphony, a secure messaging service backed and used by 14 of the biggest banks on Wall Street, is raising up to $200 million in a new round of funding with a pre-money valuation over $1 billion, TechCrunch has learned. The funding will come from existing investors, along with a new backer, the government of Singapore via its investment arm (which includes Temasek and GIC). Symphony has… Read More
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Google brings RCS, a next-gen upgrade to SMS, to Rogers customers in Canada
In November, Google announced plans to bring RCS, a next-generation upgrade to SMS, and something of an iMessage alternative for Android users, to customers with Android phones on Sprint. At the time, Google said that it planned to roll out RCS to other carrier partners in the months ahead. In just over a month since the original announcement, a second carrier is coming onboard: Rogers… Read More
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Salesforce LiveMessage brings messaging to Service Cloud
As more and more people use SMS and messaging apps like Facebook Messenger to interact with friends, it’s only logical that they want to interact with business that way too — and today Salesforce launched LiveMessage, a tool that helps customer service reps manage messaging traffic just like any customer interactions in Service Cloud. For starters, it supports SMS/MMS and… Read More
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Software is due for a bundling event
We are approaching a new phase of enterprise software, where every niche of Software-as-a-Service has been filled and cloud companies are being consolidated into larger companies. Markets have a tendency to cycle from bundling to unbundling, and software is due for a bundling event. Read More
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Listen makes phone numbers smarter with auto-responders, muting, reminders and more
A new mobile application called Listen wants to make phone numbers smarter by giving you more control over who’s texting and calling, thanks to a variety of features like whitelists, reminders, auto-responders, mute buttons and more. The idea, explains the company, is to offer one “inbox” for everything that comes in via your phone number. The end result is a number you can… Read More
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WhatsApp adds GIF support in iOS app
Amid increased competition from Apple’s iMessage, Snapchat, and Google’s new entry Allo, Facebook-owned WhatsApp has now rolled out support for sharing GIFs in its messaging application on iOS. According to the app update text in iTunes, the new feature will allow users to send and receive GIFs, including Live Photos and shorter videos, both of which can be now converted to… Read More
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