WhatsApp is Including Ads on the Status Screen

WhatsApp’s parent company, Meta, announced on Monday, June 16, that it is launching advertisements on the most widely used messaging service in the world. With the exception of the Updates tab, where users publish their status updates and browse other channels, the advertisements will not be displayed within private chats. WhatsApp users will view advertisements in a similar way to Instagram, where users see them after a few stories. Since 1.5 billion people browse this area every day, it is hoped that advertisements would be able to generate revenue without interfering with normal conversations.

Importantly, advertisements will not appear in group messaging or private chats, maintaining the platform’s longstanding emphasis on privacy.

Three New Features Are Changing

Alongside the change, WhatsApp is releasing three new resources for entrepreneurs and creators looking to expand:

1. Paid Channel Subscriptions:

enabling consumers to pay a monthly subscription fee to access their preferred channels’ exclusive content.

2. Promoted Channels:

granting specific channels more visibility in the Discovery directory in an effort to draw in new followers.

3. Advertisements Within Status:

WhatsApp will begin displaying full-screen, skippable advertisements in between Status slides, similar to what Instagram Stories does. If Status circles are ignored, the ads just never show up. Tapping an ad starts a conversation with the company.

These new features will only show up on the Updates tab, away from your private chats, in order to address user experience issues. This implies that your experience won’t alter at all if you simply use WhatsApp to communicate with friends and family.

WhatsApp will only use a small amount of data to display adverts it deems helpful, specifically:

• Your language and nation
• The Channels You Follow
• Your ad interactions

Ad settings from Instagram or Facebook may also affect the advertising you view if your WhatsApp is connected to Meta’s Accounts Center.