They are alternatives because your friends can also switch services. The problem is that you are not willing to pay either money up front or with watching ads. That is not a meta problem, that is problem with your personal preferences no matter how you want to spin it. There are many alternatives available right now and they didn’t disappear like your bad analogy. What you’ve written is clearly disingenuous because you’re not willing to pay for SMS, which everyone including your friends still has access to. It’s not fair to blame meta for that
Alternatives aren't real alternatives if you can't get to your friends.