RCS Messaging - Waiting for Activation

[petenice]

My daughter's iphone has just started having an issue with RCS messaging. I have an Android and we've been sending messaging over RCS until it stopped receiving them since Saturday and now the RCS setting on her phone says 'Waiting for activation'. No system updates have happened on either phone. EE support have been beyond useless. I've had the same phone conversations 4 times and eventually got through to level 2 support who was equally useless. His 'support' was to upgrade the phone 11 to iOS26 or factory reset the phone. Wasn't interested in exploring anything else. 

Anyone else had this issue with RCS messaging?

[petenice]

As I've already said multiple times your tier 2 tech team only offered upgrade to ios26 or factory reset as the options. They were not prepared to look at any other solutions.

It even says on the Apple website that RCS messaging is a protocol controlled by the network:

"RCS is a service provided by network providers. When your device connects to your mobile network, it communicates with your network provider and their partners to set up RCS. User identifiers are exchanged for your network provider and their partners to authenticate your device and provide a connection."

Obviously the handshake isn't working - maybe you should look at that reason rather than getting me to factory reset the phone 

[bristolian]

I do wonder in cases like this, what RCS offers that standard text messaging doesn't.

I'm genuinely curious - for full video, photo, multimedia etc - then a messaging app such as WhatsApp or Messenger is the ideal solution. For cross-platform texting, then I'm curious what RCS offers "in the real world" that SMS doesn't.

[petenice]

SMS isn't being delivered from my Android to that iPhone since RCS stopped working- receipt says 'unsuccessful' which is further suggestions of a network issue.

RCS was the protocol that was working until a few days ago 

My daughter is also 12 - I don't want her to have access to WhatsApp 

[Schockwave]

@petenice , we cannot do anything in the public forum, not sure why you are unable to use RCS, as it works for me, and I believe it worked when I had IOS 18, so no idea, other than switching RCS off, rebooting and then switching it on again.

@bristolian , it means customers can now send messages with photos etc, without incurring a charge, same as sending an IMessage, which Android have RCS now Apple do as well. Yes there are apps like WhatsApp, but not everyone wants to use them or have them.

[petenice]

I mean...I'm here to establish if anyone else has experienced the same issue or whether this is an isolated issue. As for 'have you tried turning it off and on again' - yes I have. I've also removed the SIM, switched network operator, reset network setting and updated the OS to a newer version - nothing has helped.

[Leanne_T]

Hi @petenice 

Thanks for coming back to us. 

Just to check, can your daughter make and receive calls? If your text messages are not being delivered, can she receive messages from other numbers? 

It would be worth trying the SIM in any other device not just an iPhone to see if RCS messaging works OK and she can receive your messages. 

Leanne.