Remember back in the days when WhatsApp required an annual subscription fee in order for you to use the service? Well, the company stopped asking for said subscription fee when Facebook purchased it. Cool though it may be to the end user, WhatsApp still needs a way to source some revenue of its own, and it appears that the company may be working on a system that would rope companies to the fold.
According to a report by Reuters, it appears that WhatsApp is currently testing out a system that would let businesses contact WhatsApp users directly. Currently, the tests are being conducted by a handful of companies that are part of the Y Combinator startup incubator. One of the ways that WhatsApp could earn revenue from such a system is by charging businesses a fee in order for them to contact customers on WhatsApp.
While this may sound like an awful idea to users, the report also states that WhatsApp is also working carefully to avoid problems that may stem from this system, with the most obvious problem being spam. WhatsApp is also reportedly surveying users about the extent to which they interact with businesses on the chat platform, and whether or not they have received spam from the service.
It is still too early to tell if WhatsApp would finalize this system as their main source of revenue. However, if the implementation is wildly off the mark, the consequences could be disastrous for WhatsApp.
Source: Reuters
