WhatsApp launches innovations to capitalize on its use

MADRID (EFE).— WhatsApp announced new features for its News tab, including status ads, promoted channels, and paid subscriptions, which will not affect those who only use the platform for personal messaging.

The News tab, launched a year and a half ago, brings together optional features such as statuses and channels.

“It’s where people go to discover something new on WhatsApp,” Nikila Srinivasan , head of business messaging at Meta , told a group of journalists.

According to Srinivasan, the new features “will be a global rollout” and will be rolled out gradually “over the coming months.”

In the case of promoted channels, the intention is to facilitate content discovery.

“Helping people discover new channels that might be interesting to them,” he explained.

Paid channel subscriptions are also being added. This will allow "channel owners to share exclusive, real-time updates with their most engaged followers," Srinivasan explained.

Regarding statuses, which function similarly to Instagram Stories, businesses can now pay to appear in that space.

"So you can easily start a conversation on WhatsApp about a product or service," he said.

Srinivasan emphasized that “messages, calls, and personal statuses remain end-to-end encrypted,” and that “they are not used to serve ads or report what users see.”

For channel and state ads, data such as device language and country and city codes, as well as user activity on the News Feed, will be used.

“If the user only uses WhatsApp for personal messaging, they won't see the new features and won't be affected,” Srinivasan emphasized.

If the user chooses to use the Meta Accounts Center for the company's other apps, such as Instagram or Facebook, their ad preferences will apply.