WhatsApp is working on a private newsletter feature for a future app update. The messaging platform announced the rollout of the new update through the Google Play Beta Program, bringing the version up to 2.23.5.3.
According to WaBetaInfo, which discovered the hints by searching through the code, the tool is now under development and could be launched in a future program update. Although the Meta-owned platform has not released any official statement yet, WeBetaInfo stated that “we cannot say for sure that it is really called “Newsletter” as it seems a codename at the moment, but we can temporarily call it that way.”
The feature will be a one-to-many tool for broadcasting information, and it looks like a new way to quickly receive valuable updates from people and groups like local officials, sports teams, or other organizations.
With the newsletter feature, users will finally be able to choose who they want to hear from and follow broadcasters of their choice right within WhatsApp.
Individuals can already “broadcast” their messages to a large audience via the messaging platform. The new functionality allows people to have conversations open with several individuals at once and has completely changed how people communicate. It appears that the newsletter feature’s current plan would be to make this use case more extensive.
We are unsure if the new feature is merely one of these functionality tests that will ultimately become a reality. Still, we know it would help streamline the information that arrives on your desk. To improve the platform’s use for all users, Whatsapp has continued to develop over time and has added new features.
Read also: WhatsApp releases voice status and other new features
What the newsletter feature could mean for users
Recently, Whatsapp released a feature called Communities, a new place to bring related groups together and improve organization. This feature aims to make groups communicate better by enabling sub-groups and allowing more users to interact and connect.
Perhaps it is based on the positive feedback from the communities feature that WhatsApp is now deciding to work on the Newsletter feature.
The platform also recently announced the introduction of new additions to its status feature to provide users with a better experience. These include Voice Status, Private Audience Selector, Status Reactions, Status Profile Rings, and Link Previews on Status.
However, the new newsletter tool if introduced would change how people send messages to a large number of people and also what people chose to receive as information.
As a result of the feature’s one-way, one-to-many design, which prevents end-to-end encryption from providing users with any real privacy benefits, it will be possible to reach an unspecified, large number of people.
Based on several clues in the code observed by WeBetaInfo, Newsletters will be a separate and optional section within the Status tab, which is separate from private chats and will not affect the end-to-end encryption of private messaging.
Read also: WhatsApp introduces proxy to combat internet shutdown and government censorship
All your messages and calls are and will always be end-to-end encrypted. This means no one else, not even WhatsApp, Meta, and a proxy provider, can read your personal messages and listen to your private calls.
Considering that newsletters are a private space where you always have control over what you see when you see it and who you see, this is another distinguishing feature that stands out:
- According to the site’s findings, the content will always be displayed chronologically without any special priority, just like other WhatsApp chats. Additionally, the new feature does not currently contain any advertisements. It shows no signs of algorithmic recommendations or social graphs pushing content to users they did not choose to see.
- This feature will support handles which means that users can easily find and join Newsletters by searching for them using a username right within the platform.
- But to prevent the disclosure of a user’s identity, the phone number of those users who create and subscribe to a newsletter is always disguised and hidden.
WhatsApp could change the newsletter market
We are aware that 2 billion people use Whatsapp every day. The platform has the potential to overtake other newsletter providers in a month, even if only a small portion of this user base expresses interest in the category, which the great majority of them are unaware even exists.
The market for newsletters is anticipated to expand as more people start reading them. By enabling consumers to read all newsletters within the instant messaging app, WhatsApp might deliver a stronger newsletter experience. The open rate will soar, but WhatsApp will have to find a way to provide newsletter authors with more advanced analytics.
Read also: WhatsApp finally launches Communities and other new features
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