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"Update:\u00A0BlackBerry says it has pulled the leaked Android app, and has halted the rollout of the iOS app because demand caused &amp;quot;issues&amp;quot; with its servers.\r\n\r\nUpdate 2: BlackBerry says BBM for Android and iOS won\u2019t relaunch this week as blocking leaked app 'will take some time'\r\n\r\n- - -\r\n\r\nBlackBerry has finally released its BBM messaging service for iOS today. The app is currently available in a number of Asia-Pacific countries, including Malaysia, where it is past midnight on Sunday.\r\n\r\nJump to our overview:\u00A0Hands-on with BlackBerry's BBM app for iOS\r\n\r\nThe Android version is expected to drop very soon, leaked versions have already been spotted across the Web.\r\nSelamat pagi #Malaysia. #BBM for #iPhone now available in the App Store. #BBM4ALL\r\n\r\n\u2014 BBM (@BBM) September 21, 2013\r\nEarlier this week, the company announced\u00A0plans to release the apps this weekend, but there's been uncertainty since the Android version didn't arrive at 7:00 am EST as scheduled. The iOS version was set for Sunday September 22.\r\n\r\nThis move is really a last throw of the dice from struggling BlackBerry, which long resisted calls to bring BBM to other platforms, preferring keep it exclusive to its own devices, in the hope of creating customer loyalty.\r\n\r\nBlackBerry says there are over 60 million BBM users worldwide and 10 billion messages are sent and received daily, but that's dwarfed by its rivals.\u00A0WhatsApp has 300 million monthly active users\u00A0who send 27 billion messages per day, while China's WeChat has 235 million MAUs.\r\n\r\nBlackBerry and Samsung have been pushing BBM hard in Africa -- where BlackBerry smartphones remain popular, and the app could be significant for Samsung. The release is unlikely to impact other markets, where BlackBerry's once-dominant market share continues to plummet -- and that includes Asia.\r\n\r\n\u27A4\u00A0BBM for iOS\u00A0(May not be available in all regions yet)\r\n\r\nHeadline image via Berrytokyo / Flickr\r\n\r\nDisclosure: This article contains an affiliate link. While we only ever write about products we think deserve to be on the pages of our site, The Next Web may earn a small commission if you click through and buy the product in question."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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