WhatsApp remains one of the most popular chatting apps. Acquired by Meta a couple of years ago, the social media app has seen many improvements in the last few years. The latest changes were reworking the app’s UI to add a Channel interface. They might still be making other changes, perhaps starting to show ads, which might be why they introduced Channels.
WhatsApp is probably the only social media app that does not have a paid subscription. The company currently earns revenue from its “Business WhatsApp API,” which generates about $10B annually. Although the company confirmed that it does not have to show ads before increasing its revenue, we think its likely about when.
A Meta executive, in an interview with a Brazilian news media, did not rule out ads on WhatsApp entirely. He only said we will not see ads in the inbox or chats, hinting that ads on WhatsApp could be a thing in the future.
“We don’t think that’s the right model. People, when they open their inbox, don’t want to see advertising,” he said. However, the executive doesn’t rule out the idea of WhatsApp showing ads in other parts of the app.”
As expected, Will Cathcart said we are likely to see ads on WhatsApp appear on Public Channels and status. He also says the company might look other ways instead of displaying ads like charging people to join a channel. We will not be surprised if WhatsApp introduces a paid subscription in the future, as it would be odd seeing display ads in the app.
We understand WhatsApp has tested display ads on WhatsApp status but never made it public due to internal fear of how users will react. It’s been five years since, and we do not think they will want to display ads on WhatsApp. They will likely introduce a paid subscription just like other social media chatting apps.
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