The biggest hole in the airport lounge analogy here is that airport lounges aren't viral services, and that they aren't masquerading as a different, previously

The biggest hole in the airport lounge analogy here is that airport lounges aren't viral services, and that they aren't masquerading as a different, previously available, universally compatible service. Entering an airport lounge doesn't require more than one party, while having a text conversation does. There's a reason iMessage is a sticking point for Android users and other iPhone-exclusive features like iCloud, Force Touch, AirDrop, etc aren't. iMessage is integrated into a service (SMS) that is designed to facilitate communication between phones. Apple has hijacked the UX of an existing messaging service in a way that creates two tiers of conversation. Furthermore, they've made conversations with non-iOS devices unnecessarily obtuse.