Google Hangouts and XMPP support

Question

Had a question about Google's support for XMPP. I want to build a mobile chat client on top of google chat that can interoperate with google chat run from within Gmail or any other service. Would this application be possible to build since has announced that it will drop support for XMPP for their new Hangouts product? Are there any alternative techniques to allow interoperable chat with Google accounts?

Answer 1

Actually, they removed server to server (s2s) federation. Third-party software works as client to server (c2s) is still enabled, even if we don't know for how long.

As Google says

Note: We announced a new communications product, Hangouts, in May 2013. Hangouts will > replace Google Talk and does not support XMPP. The information in this Developer's > Guide pertains only to Google Talk.

More info:

• http://windowspbx.blogspot.de/2013/05/hangouts-wont-hangout-with-other.html
• http://www.theverge.com/2013/5/15/4318830/inside-hangouts-googles-big-fix-for-its-messaging-mess

Answer 2

What's annoying is that users who have switched to Hangouts still show up as online if you have added them as a contact; your messages to them just go into a black hole.

From what I can tell, non-hangouts-enabled users can still connect and chat with non-Google users just fine using XMPP.