According to reports, WhatsApp is currently testing out, for the first time, a system that will allow businesses to talk directly to the customers that are using this application.
The tests are being conducted by many companies that are part of the “Y Combinator” startup incubator. It seems that Facebook wants to earn some money by using WhatsApp.
We remind you that the application has been purchased by Facebook three years ago for $19 billions and that the application is completely free for everyone. The WhatsApp application used to cost $0.99 per year, but Facebook has decided to remove completely the yearly fee.
Well, it seems that now, the WhatsApp application will be able to finally generate some revenue. We think that Facebook plans to charge businesses that want to contact customers via WhatsApp. However, the developers are currently working carefully in order to make sure that the companies will not receive some annoying spam messages.
We remind you that last year, WhatsApp has announced that it is planning to develop an application programming interface (API) that will help users to talk to an airline company about a delayed flight or to a bank about a fraudulent transaction.
Last month, the company has made a deal with “Y Combinator,” which is providing training and advice to startups that show potential, in order to have a small number of companies that will take a part of an early trial.
Umer Ilyas, the co-founder of Cowlar (one of the startups involved), said that the trial is still in early stages. Ilyas added that the system is highly anticipated in remote places where WhatsApp is very popular.
We think that WhatsApp is making a good move by bringing this new feature to its application. This way, more customers will want to install WhatsApp in order to have an easier way to contact a company that’s inside the program.
Leave a Reply