Let’s be clear: nobody likes ads in their apps, especially if those apps were originally ad-free. This fact became painfully clear to Meta when it first tried adding ads to WhatsApp in the middle of last year. Despite the pushback, it seems like the social media giant is still adamant about staying the course. There is a way to stop these ads soon, but, unfortunately, it seems like you need to cough up some cash first.
To bring you up to speed, Meta announced that it wants to implement ads in Status during its 16 June press release. The company reasoned that this addition will help users find new businesses and “easily start a conversation with them about a product or a service they’re promoting.” Furthermore, the social media giant clarified that it will not be sharing your personal number, messages, calls, and groups with these advertisers in the same press release.
Currently, there is no option for users to remove these ads. At least, not yet. Android Authority reports that, after digging through WhatsApp’s latest app version (2.26.3.9), the publication discovered a string of code hinting that Meta may eventually offer a paid, ad-free subscription model.
The code specifically reads:
<code>Since you recently removed your WhatsApp account from your Accounts Center, the price of your subscription for no ads in Status & Channels has decreased.
Review your subscription to accept the new price of <b>%1$s/month</b>; or choose to use Status & Channels free of charge with ads.</code>
Moreover, Android Authority was able to get the app to actually display one of its messages about no-ad subscriptions, seen below. The news outlet admitted that it has no idea how this programme will operate or how much you need to pay in order to access this subscription service.
Meta has long included ads in its apps, and it hasn’t spared even its other messaging platform, Facebook Messenger. Unfortunately, ad-free subscriptions aren’t new either, as Meta rolled out the service to Facebook and Instagram users in the UK late last year. Meta has priced it at GBP2.99/month (~RM16) for web users or GBP3.99/month (~RM21) for iOS and Android users.
However, it is important to note that Meta added the service in response to UK regulatory guidance. Afterwards, it started spreading to other European countries, particularly those in the EU, EEA, and Switzerland. As a result, only people in the aforementioned regions get to enjoy this service for now.
At present, there’s no word on when this subscription service will take effect or whether it will be introduced in the Malaysian market specifically, let alone for how much. Details about this service are quite scarce, but we’ll likely hear more about it in the future.
(Source: Android Authority)
