This week, WhatsApp did something that its founders said that it will never do: it is putting Advertisement inside the appIt ends WhatsApp-Plus run to provide an advertising message and calling experience.
Meta, which acquired WhatsApp in 2014, tried to justify the decision, saying that advertisements would be indexed on its “update” tab, where you would see some sponsored status updates. WhatsApp status feature allows users to share photos, videos and text messages that disappear after 24 hours – but now you will also see from businesses. “If you only use WhatsApp to chat with friends and loved ones, then there is no change in your experience,” Meta writes in its announcement,
But the rollout of advertisements in its status feature can only be the beginning for meta, Which rakes more More than $ 160 billion in advertising revenue from Facebook and Instagram in 2024. Meta states that its advertisements are made with “taking into account privacy” and will not be attracted to your personal messages, calls and situations, which will be encrypted. Instead, WhatsApp is limiting advertising targeting to elements such as your city, country, language, methods of interacting with channels and advertisements you follow. Nevertheless, bringing targeted advertisements on the platform is on obstacles with its identity as a “safe” messaging app – a theory that aims to maintain its founders.
WhatsApp co-founders Jaan Kaum and Brian Acton have made their stand very clear to the advertisement. “Remember, when the advertisement involves You user Products are, “one 2012 WhatsApp reads blog postsAlso kept the community A note from Acton taped her desk, which wrote, “No advertisement! No game! No gimmick!” Reminds what kind of apps they should create.
Just two years after the acquisition of WhatsApp meta, the app infection from 99 cents per year Fully free modelThose days, WhatsApp said It will still “provide an experience without” third -party advertisements and spam. “
Behind the curtain, Meta and Mark Zuckerberg continuously pushed for the targeted advertisement and excluded the community and acton Company“The targeted advertisement is one that makes me sad,” said A 2018 interview with Forbes In which he explained his departure. In the later years, Meta has worked on bringing advertisements to WhatsApp. it Plug on his idea in 2020 but later Extended the possibility In 2023, users now now before rolling advertisements. WhatsApp is also rolling for businesses to pay for the channels to be subscribed to the channels and the channels to pay for the top locations on the page.
“Our founders have written about the initial version of WhatsApp,” WhatsApp spokesman Anaik von Der Vy said in an email statement. Ruckus“Later later, the experience we are creating will still not interrupt your chat.” Von Der Vy says that the company believes that the update tab is a “right place” for advertisements and other new features of meta.
The reality is that, the business of Meta is created on advertising. It could not help but Launch advertisements on threads Earlier this year, and is AI advertising equipment plan to launch To help companies make more advertisements. Meta also brought its AI chatbot into WhatsApp, where users can interact with bott, ask questions and generate images. The company says This can read messages that “mention @meta AI, or those who choose to share with meta AI,” to increase the concerns of privacy that whatsapp is to be cured With private AI chat,
“This is another betrayal of privacy security that once distinguishes WhatsApp.”
Launching targeted advertisements only combines these concerns. John Davisson, director of litigation at the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), said in a statement, “This is another betrayal of privacy security that once distinguishes WhatsApp and attracts many of its users on stage.” Ruckus“Meta has taken a service that has promised an advertisement and minimum data collection and included it in another tental of its monitoring advertising empire.”
Many people are not happy about the joint of advertisements, saying with some users on Reddit saying that they plan to switch Signal advertisement app Due to change. “A reminder favorable for people. Signal is a better product designed for good,” A user writesAnother CommentIncreased over 3,500 times, says: “The story of the story never rely on the world. Meta/Facebook promised to add advertisements to WhatsApp when he acquired the app for $ 19bln.” there are still Some users Indifferent to change because it affects a tab that they use less frequently.
Bill Buddington, Senior Staff Technologist at Electronic Frontier Foundation, said, “The online advertising ecosystem has been repeatedly shown for widespread privacy and safety violations.” Ruckus“While this is not a stunning step for Meta, it is putting 3 billion users of WhatsApp unnecessary, all did not ask anyone for everyone for a milestone strategy and no one wanted.”
Update, 17 June: Added a statement to WhatsApp.
