Apple blocks some iMessages, but there’s a workaround, Beeper says

And here we go again: after Investigation reports Some users are not receiving iMessages on Beeper Mini and Beeper Cloud, Pepper says Apple appears to be “intentionally blocking” iMessages access to about five percent of Beeper Mini users. The company says that uninstalling and reinstalling the app fixes the issue and that it’s working on a broader solution (although that won’t be in tonight).

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the new Beeper claim, nor did it respond to my original request for comment. But since the company has already banned Beeper Mini before, it is not surprising that it has taken action against the app again.

The issues appear to have started as early as around 6pm ET; At that time one edge An employee reported that they were no longer receiving iMessages on the Beeper Mini. We have seen that some users on Reddit They reported not receiving iMessages either, but others say that’s the same Still a job For them, which would follow Beeper’s explanation that only some users are affected.

Beeper CEO Eric Migicowski apologized to users on Wednesday evening In a post on X (formerly Twitter). “I understand how upsetting this uncertainty is for our users,” he said. “I wouldn’t feel bad if you walked away now. We’ll let you know when things are back to normal.” He also cited Epic Games’ big win over Google in court as a rallying cry: “@TimSweeneyEpic Epic won over Big Tech this week. We have a chance. We don’t give up.”

Beeper launched the original version of the Beeper Mini, which allowed Android owners to use iMessage with just their phone numbers, on December 5, but Apple found a way to stop that just three days later. The Beeper made the Beeper Mini work again on Monday, but it only works with an Apple ID. We’ll have to wait and see if this supposedly intentional ban will still be available to only five percent of Beeper Mini users or if Apple finds a way to ban more.

Updated December 13, 10:28 PM ET: Added a post about what Beeper Cloud users should do if they are affected by issues.