WhatsApp sails past SMS, but where does messaging go next? — Benedict Evans

First and last paragraphs from a timely mobile messaging/apps reality check

"Noted this week: WhatsApp reported that it now has 700m MAUs sending 30bn messages a day. For comparison, the global SMS system sees about 20bn messages a day.
[...]
The deeper issue here is that the whole interaction model for smartphones is deeply unsettled. With smartphones we've moved away from the unifying model of the web browser plus Google, but haven't reached stability in a new model - everything is still changing, including the questions. We don't really know what it will mean to 'find', 'discover' and 'install' an 'app' in a few years." 

WhatsApp sails past SMS, but where does messaging go next? — Benedict Evans