WhatsApp ceases to be free. Meta reveals a fresh subscription model

WhatsApp, 1 of the most popular communicators in the world, ceases to be full free. Company Meta, the application owner, announced the implementation of a fresh business model based on subscriptions and advertising, which means a major change for millions of users worldwide. Although private conversations will stay free, users must prepare for fresh realities.

New subscription model: you will gotta pay for access to content

The key component of the changes is the introduction of the subscription strategy in the tab ‘News’. Meta will enable creators – specified as influencers, celebrities or media – publishing exclusive content available only to paying users. The subscription price will be determined by the creators themselves, while WhatsApp stops about 10% of the proceeds from each transaction.

Subscriptions will be active for a period 30 daysand its payment will supply access to peculiar materials which are not available to users utilizing the communicator free of charge.

In practice, this means that WhatsApp is increasingly distant from its first thought of a simple, free communication tool, becoming a media platform with functionality akin to social networking sites.

Advertising in WhatsApp: a fresh channel for companies

In addition to the subscription model, WhatsApp besides opens to corporate advertising. fresh options are to appear in the tab ‘Status’where users will watch sponsored materials promoting company channels. Meta announces that companies will be able to advance their profiles and users will be able to straight contact brands and view their products without leaving the application.

Thanks to this, WhatsApp will become another link in the online sales chain, which is part of Meta's wider strategy on the monetisation of communication services.

What's free?

For many users the most crucial information is that classic conversations – i.e. private chats – will stay free. Meta besides ensures that the erstwhile level end-to-end encryption and the protection of the individual data of users will stay unchanged. Private conversations are so to stay safe and unavailable for advertisers.

Controversy around Privacy

The introduction of advertisements and a paid content strategy met with criticism from privacy defenders. celebrated Austrian Activist Max SchremsOrganisation NOYB (None Of Your Business), accuses Meta breach of European data protection rules. The main allegation is that the advertising mark on WhatsApp is based on data collected on Facebook and Instagramwhich may lead to serious abuse.

NOYB announced that legal action against Mark Zuckerberg's company. At this point, it is not yet known precisely erstwhile the fresh functions will be made available to users in Europe.

What consequences for users?

Although at first glance changes appear mainly to concern companies and content makers, in practice they may mean:

• Increase the number of notifications and advertisements in the application,
• Reducing communicator transparency by mixing private content with commercial content,
• Gradual limitation of free content coverage for paid subscriptions,
• Greater interference with user data, even if they do not usage paid services.

Although private conversations are to stay free, users can feel a change in the quality of experience with the app – especially if advertisements start appearing invasively.

Perspectives: Will WhatsApp become another Instagram?

Meta's actions indicate a clear approximation of WhatsApp to Facebook or Instagram. Monetisation of the communicator through subscriptions and advertising is simply a logical step from a corporate point of view, but this may mean moving distant from the first assumptions of the application as a simple, safe and free form of communication.

The key question is: whether users accept these changesor start looking for alternatives, specified as Signal, Telegramwhether the fresh communicator XChat, developed by Elon Musk – which is announced as a tool free from advertising and telephone numbers.

The meta seems to be prepared to hazard the outflow of any users, hoping for the loyalty of millions of people accustomed to WhatsApp as a basic channel of communication. Introduction of subscriptions and advertisements is another step in transforming free applications into income generating productsnot just serving the user.