UK here. "no-one" uses iMessage. The only people I use it with are the ones who refuse to use Signal (because I refuse to use WhatsApp). Most people here don't know or care that the green/blue bubbles mean different things. I've had to explain it repeatedly.
The way iMessage locks your phone number into the Apple ID system, meaning that people using iMessage to chat with people who have changed their phone away from Apple sometimes can't get messages through.
I assume you put no-one in quotes because it's not true? Of course people in the UK use iMessage! From this source, it looks like about 1 in 3 internet users age 16-64 use it.
Unpacking my quotes, I mean it like this: most people don't choose to use iMessage because of its features, and to look after their groups. They mainly use Messenger, WhatsApp, Telegram, Snapchat or Signal for that purpose. You _can't_ use iMessage outside of niche groups because of the roughly 50/50 split in iOS/Android ownership [0].
People do use iMessage, because it's the SMS app on their phone.
> The way iMessage locks your phone number into the Apple ID system, meaning that people using iMessage to chat with people who have changed their phone away from Apple sometimes can't get messages through.
You can disable iMessage on an iPhone and it just becomes SMS. You're not even forced to use it as an iPhone user.
In the US perhaps.
UK here. "no-one" uses iMessage. The only people I use it with are the ones who refuse to use Signal (because I refuse to use WhatsApp). Most people here don't know or care that the green/blue bubbles mean different things. I've had to explain it repeatedly.
The way iMessage locks your phone number into the Apple ID system, meaning that people using iMessage to chat with people who have changed their phone away from Apple sometimes can't get messages through.
Here, it's a joke app, used under sufferance.