Apple's iMessage service briefly goes on the blink

Published November 19, 2012 1:20pm

For several moments Sunday, iMessage —Apple Inc.'s proprietary messaging system for iOS devices and Macs running Mountain Lion— was not accessible, prompting users to voice their displeasure on Twitter.

Apple's support page for its cloud services indicated "some" users were unable to use iMessage from 11:45 a.m. to 4:32 p.m. Pacific time.

The FaceTime service was similarly affected during the time iMessage was down. iMessage is Apple's instant messenger service while FaceTime is its video-calling app.

However, as of 10:30 a.m. Manila time, it said "normal service has been restored" for the affected services.

Storage upgrade issues also affected some users on Nov. 16, though normal service had also been restored, Apple said.

Tech site Mashable said the outage prompted some Apple users to vent on Twitter.

Mashable said the outage affected mainly iOS devices and Macs with OS X 10.6.6.

Meanwhile, a separate article on CNET said this was the third major disruption in the past two months.

"Outages in October and September left many users with the same message sending issues," it said.

CNET noted Apple debuted iMessage in iOS 5 in October 2011, allowing iPhone and iPad users to communicate with each other via an Internet connection.

Apple extended the feature to Macs running OS X Mountain Lion in July, it added. — TJD, GMA News

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