WhatsApp is to introduce paid advertising into its app for the first time, Meta has confirmed, in a new departure for the app.
But advertising will not appear in private chats, which remain end to end encrypted. Instead Meta is putting the ads into its content discovery Updates tab, where WhatsApp’s Channels and Status features are located. According to Meta, the Updates tab is used by 1.5 billion people a day
Business can pay to appear prominently in the Status section, making their brands more visible to consumers.
The company will also enable channel owners to charge for exclusive content within WhatsApp. Promoted channels are also coming to WhatsApp, giving channel owners the option to grow their presence on the app.
The move will provide Meta with a new revenue source from the popular instant messaging app.
“We’ve been talking about our plans to build a business that does not interrupt your personal chats for years and we believe the Updates tab is the right place for these new features to work,” the company said in a blog post announcing the new features.
However, Meta emphasised that it will use only limited information about users to serve the ads, and personal data such as phone numbers and personal messages will not be shared with advertisers. It will use information such as a user’s country or city, language, the channels they are following, and how people interact with the ads.
“Like everything we do at WhatsApp, we’ve built these features in the most private way possible. Your personal messages, calls, and statuses remain end-to-end encrypted, meaning no one (not even us) can see or hear them,” the blog post said.
“For people that have chosen to add WhatsApp to Accounts Center, we’ll also use your ad preferences and info from across your Meta accounts.”
Meta acquired WhatsApp in a $19 billion (€16.4 billion) deal more than a decade ago. However, advertising has not been the focus for monetising the app, with its founders, Jan Koum and Brian Acton, previously promising never to sell ads within the instant messaging app. Both have now left Meta.
Instead, WhatsApp has focused on digital payments and shopping features.
The ads will begin rolling out globally from today, Meta said.
