Is Meta introducing advertisement on WhatsApp? Here is what the company says
WhatsApp on Friday rubbished media reports suggesting that the Meta-owned instant messaging platform was introducing advertisements to boost revenue.
Earlier, a report in the Financial Times claimed that WhatsApp was exploring a new feature “that would display adverts in the app for the first time.” The report also noted that the discussions were in the early stage as the move had caused ‘internal controversy.’
The head of WhatsApp, Will Cathcart, rejected the media report as ‘false.’
WATCH:How India and Brazil may help WhatsApp monetise chats
Taking to X, formerly Twitter, Cathcart announced that the Financial Times story was false. “We aren't doing this. Also it looks like you misspelled Brian's name…", he wrote.
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Other claims rejected by WhatsApp
The Financial Times report also claimed that Meta was exploring offering subscription services to users opting for the ad-free version of the app.
This claim has also been rejected by WhatsApp.
Speculations about WhatsApp monetisation
For quite some time, there has been speculation among analysts about Meta's intentions to introduce advertisements on WhatsApp.
This speculation stems from Meta’s desire to devise ways to generate revenue from a platform that boasts a staggering 2 billion daily users worldwide. In contrast, Instagram, a more cost-effective acquisition for Meta, has been more successful in monetisation efforts.
Up to this point, Meta has been hesitant to implement ads within the WhatsApp application. Instead, their focus has been on generating income through WhatsApp Business, a specialised offering designed for merchants who are willing to pay for specific services.
Notably, WhatsApp Business has attracted over 200 million monthly active users.
“With WhatsApp Business users reaching 200M MAU, and GenAI customer service tools being tested out, Meta appears to be taking steps towards monetizing the 2Bn+ active users on WhatsApp. Click to Message is already running at a 10B+ revenue run rate while training both the users and businesses to interact within WhatsApp,” analysts at AllianceBernstein were quoted as saying by Tech Crunch.
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