Mumbai: Mark Zuckerberg has announced the launch of WhatsApp Channels: a simple, reliable, and private way to receive important updates from people and organisations, right within WhatsApp.
Zuckerberg said, “Today we're announcing WhatsApp Channels -- a private way to follow people and organisations that matter to you, right within WhatsApp. We are starting in Singapore and Colombia but will roll out to everyone later this year. We're building Channels to be the most private way to communicate. As a channel admin, your phone number won't be shown to followers, and following a channel won't show that to the admin or others following the channel either. One of WhatsApp’s core principles is to not store your messages. That's why channel updates will only be available for 30 days with no permanent record. We're just getting started with Channels. And I can't wait to bring this to everyone later this year.”
WhatsApp has built channels in a new tab called Updates - where viewers find Status and channels you choose to follow - separate from your chats with family, friends, and communities.
Channels are a one-way broadcast tool for admins to send text, photos, videos, stickers, and polls. To help viewers select channels to follow, WhatsApp is building a searchable directory where one can find their hobbies, sports teams, updates from local officials, and more. Viewers can also get to a channel from invite links sent in chats, e-mail, or posted online.
WhatsApp is aspiring to build the most private broadcast service available. This starts by protecting the personal information of both admins and followers. As a channel admin, your phone number and profile photo won’t be shown to followers. Likewise, following a channel won’t reveal one's phone number to the admin or other followers. Who you decide to follow is your choice and it’s private.
Similar to how we build messaging, we don’t believe Channel updates should have to stick around forever. So we’ll only store channel history on our servers for up to 30 days and we’ll add ways to make updates disappear even faster from follower’s devices. Admins will also have the option to block screenshots and forwards from their channels.
Lastly, WhatsApp will make it possible for admins to decide who can follow their channel and whether they want their channel to be discoverable in the directory or not. Given the aim of Channels is to reach a wide audience, channels are not end-to-end encrypted by default. They think there are some cases where end-to-end encrypted channels to a limited audience might make sense, such as a non-profit or health organisation, and they are exploring this as a future option as well.
WhatsApp believes there is an opportunity to support admins with a way for them to build a business around their channel using our expanding payment services as well as the ability to promote certain channels in the directory to help increase awareness.
