BBM Beta Now Available for Download to All Windows Phone 8 Users

After a brief private beta, BBM for Windows Phone is now available for download by everyone. However, the app is still technically in Beta, as evident from the listing in the Windows Phone store.

"After a short run in private beta, I'm happy to announce that BBM for Windows Phone is being publicly released to the Windows Phone store in beta starting today," Donny Halliwell, PR Manager and Social Media Marketing Lead, BlackBerry, wrote in a blog post on Thursday.

The BBM Beta app for Windows Phone provides the same features that are available on other platforms, including secure messaging, BBM Groups, Find Friends, BBM Feeds, 'Pin' to Start, and more. The app works with Windows Phone 8 only.

"We are intent on bringing the most popular application experiences to Windows Phone, and with BBM, we are pleased to bring many of its top features to the Windows Phone platform," said Bryan Biniak, Vice President and General Manager, Developer Experience, Microsoft. "BBM on Windows Phone brings our customers the secure, easy-to-use messaging experience they demand, and we expect that new features will roll out in the months to come."

"As the popularity of BBM continues to grow, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to expand its availability to the Windows Phone community," said John Sims, President Global Enterprise Services at BlackBerry. "The BBM app for Windows Phone shows our commitment to supporting cross-platform capabilities, and we are excited to be working with Microsoft to deliver a new level of collaboration to the Windows Phone platform."