WhatsApp has announced the launch of status ads and promoted channels globally. The Meta-owned messaging service said the move is intended to make it easier for users to discover new businesses and channels. Conversely, the new tools allow businesses to grow their visibility.
The updates — ads and promoted channels — would appear with clear labels alongside the regular WhatsApp status. Users will be able to skip these ads by swiping past them, similar to how they navigate through other status posts. Previously, sponsored content was available to only a limited number of WhatsApp users. Now, WhatsApp has announced on X (formerly Twitter) that these features are available globally.
Status ads and promoted channels will work within the app’s “Updates” tab, which includes both Status and Channels. According to the company’s official business page, advertisements and promoted channels are designed to appear where users are browsing for updates. This is meant to make it easier for organisations and brands to be discovered easily and, for users, to start conversations with them directly. However, the advertisements are limited to only the updates tab. The company has emphasised that the personal messaging experience remains unchanged, meaning personal chats, calls and statuses will continue to be “end-to-end encrypted.”
The feature also includes controls that allow users to block or hide ads from specific businesses if users get annoyed by their repetitive ads. This gives users greater control over what they see in the Updates tab.
In select regions, including parts of Europe, users may also have the option to subscribe to an ad-free experience for Status and Channels. The subscription will remove ads from the Updates tab, though pricing and availability may vary by platform and location.
WhatsApp is rapidly updating its platform in an effort to expand its feature set and enhance user engagement across chats, groups and Channels. Recently, the message platform introduced a feature called “Group Chat History”. The feature aims to streamline group conversations for newly joined members in a WhatsApp group. In this update, group admins or members can share past messages in a structured way to someone who just joined a group, from 25 up to a maximum of 100 messages.
Previously, users who were added to a group could only view messages sent after they joined, often missing crucial context and relying on other members to resend earlier conversations. This feature promises to address the challenge. According to WhatsApp, when message history is shared, all members of the group are notified, with clear timestamps and sender details provided, and the history is displayed distinctly from regular messages.
