After going through a public beta for the last couple of months, the BlackBerry Social software development kit has graduated to full 1.0 status, which means we’ll now start seeing apps launching with BlackBerry Messenger integration. App World submissions received by July 8 will be available for the eventual release of BBM 6.0. Now that the primary Java tools for BBM Social are done, RIM has simultaneously kicked off the beta for their WebWorks platform. Now devs that prefer to use web languages like JavaScript, CSS, and HTML will be able to make their apps a little more social.
BBM Social has been in the works since last September, and promises to allow app devs to do stuff like inject group chat into their apps, share apps with BBM contacts, transfer files, and change BBM profile and avatar info. Of course, BlackBerry Messenger is an instant messaging client that is exclusive to RIM’s smartphones (although there have been whispers of it finding its way to Android and iOS).
Entire social circles buy in to the BlackBerry lifestyle for BBM alone, and as such, it’s a good move on RIM’s part to let devs tap into what many consider to be BlackBerry’s last selling point. It’s particularly nice because if you’re in a group that all packs a BlackBerry, you don’t have to worry about figuring out if folks are using Gtalk, AIM, Windows Live Messenger, or whatever else; everyone has BlackBerry Messenger, and it’s already installed. The lack of cross-platform connectivity is a bit of a problem, and will likely stem developer interest in BBM since most are also spending time with Android and iPhone. Still, I’m curious to see what kind of new use cases these APIs enable. Multiplayer gaming is a bit of a no-brainer, and we’ve already seen some geopositioning stuff, but what else would you guys like to see?
Devs that want to try out the new BlackBerry Messenger Social SDKs can hit up RIM’s landing page.