- Meta says it’s shutting down its Messenger app for Mac and Windows
- You have until December 15 to use its desktop apps before they retire
- There is no official reason for the decision yet, but many users are not happy
Is Messenger your go-to app for keeping track of your countless group chats? Well, unfortunately, Meta is shutting down its Messenger apps for Mac and Windows — and the change is happening soon.
As of December 15th, the Messenger app on Mac and Windows devices will cease to exist, and the company has already removed it from the Mac App Store entirely to stop new downloads – which was first spotted by Apple Insider. Its iOS and Android mobile apps still work, but the desktop app experience is being retired.
Meta announced its decision to remove Messenger for desktop on a help page, but has yet to provide a reason why. After its deprecation, users “will not be able to log into this app and will automatically be redirected to use the Facebook website for messaging”. For those who do not have a Facebook account but still use Messenger, you will be redirected to Messenger.com.
To prepare you for the big change, Meta will send in-app notifications that you will receive when the phase-out process begins. When you receive this warning, you have 60 days to use its Mac and Windows apps before they are removed forever, and you will have access blocked after that time.
What about your chat history? During this transition period, Meta encourages you to enable secure storage (see below) and create a PIN in the Messenger app before switching to the web version. Once you enable this setting, your chat history will be displayed in your conversations across all platforms, and it’s pretty straight forward to set up.
All you have to do is tap settings gear icon above your profile picture, then go to ‘Privacy and security’ and choose ‘End-to-end encrypted chats’. From there, go to Message storage and enable secure storage.
‘The last straw for me’
The phase-out process has barely begun, and Meta is already receiving backlash from users who rely on Messenger for desktop for daily communication.
The phasing out of Messenger’s desktop apps has rubbed some users the wrong way — especially those who have left Facebook but continue to use Messenger.
Although users can still access Messenger through its web version, the desktop app offered an easier way to initiate one-on-one and group chats. That convenience will disappear from December 15, which is the biggest drawback for those who are primarily desktop users.
Fortunately, its mobile app is here to stay and will remain untouched unless Meta has a huge surprise up its sleeve. We’ll update this story if Meta gives us a reason for this unexpected decision, but for now, desktop users should follow the process above before switching to the web version.
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