Meta-owned WhatsApp has officially announced a series of major updates to its Updates tab, which houses Channels and Status. Now reaching 1.5 billion daily users, this section is evolving into a key content discovery hub, and it’s about to include monetization features such as ads and paid subscriptions.
What’s New in the WhatsApp Updates Tab
- Channel Subscriptions: Users can now subscribe to their favorite Channels for a monthly fee, unlocking access to exclusive updates and content.
- Promoted Channels: New tools will help admins increase reach and visibility, and users will see recommended Channels in the directory for easier discovery.
- Ads in Status: Ads will now appear within the Status section, enabling users to directly message businesses about promoted products and services. These ads will not appear in personal chats.
Privacy-Focused Implementation
- WhatsApp emphasized that all new features are designed with privacy at their core:
- End-to-end encryption remains intact for all personal messages, group chats, and calls.
- Ads are limited in targeting, using only general data like location, language, followed Channels, and interaction history.
- Private chat data is never used for ad targeting, and phone numbers remain protected and undisclosed to advertisers.
- For users linked to Meta’s Accounts Center, ad preferences from other Meta platforms may influence ads.
These new features will begin rolling out to Android and iOS users worldwide over the next few months.
