WhatsApp puts plans for advertising in the "Status" area on hold
For the time being, WhatsApp is backing away from plans that have been smoldering for years to introduce advertising in the chat service. Most recently, it was working on placing ads in the so-called "status" area, where users can share photos and videos with their WhatsApp contacts for a day. Now, a spokesperson said on Friday that they still see this as a long-term opportunity - but there is no detailed timetable for it.
Previously reported the Wall Street Journal, the team that was supposed to work out the ad plans had been disbanded.
WhatsApp has long been struggling to find the right business model. The WhatsApp founders originally categorically rejected any advertising and wanted to finance the chat service via a subscription fee of one dollar per year. But then they sold the company to Facebook in 2014 in what ended up being a deal worth around $22 billion. The online network - which finances itself almost exclusively with advertising - was banking on a free WhatsApp and took its time thinking about how to earn money with the chat service.
Current plans include asking companies to pay for additional functions when they communicate with their customers via WhatsApp. Work is also underway to introduce a payment function in several countries.
Internal disputes over ad plans are seen as a key trigger for the departure of WhatsApp founders Jan Koum and Brian Acton, who had initially stayed on board after the acquisition by Facebook. (SDA)
