Facebook said on Thursday it will start charging companies for some of its WhatsApp Business chat services.
WhatsApp Business allows small and medium businesses to chat with customers, provide support, and sell products directly. Facebook said it will soon offer services like hosting, to help partners manage chat messages with clients, inventory, and more. WhatsApp Business has more than 50 million business users and that 175 million people around the world message a business each day.
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WhatsApp did not disclose the pricing details for the business services. but the Business app will continue to remain completely.
WhatsApp announced an update Thursday aimed at businesses that use its API, the software interface that lets companies manage message threads with their customers outside of the app, like through a third-party dashboard.
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WhatsApp currently charges some businesses a small fee – a few cents per message – to send users things like receipts and confirmation reminders via the app instead of email.
Also, Facebook has struggled to generate meaningful revenue from WhatsApp, which it acquired for $16 billion in 2014, and primarily relies on advertising on Facebook and Instagram to generate revenue. It’s one of Facebook’s acquisitions that’s under scrutiny by the House Judiciary subcommittee on antitrust, which determined earlier this month that Facebook wields monopoly power in social networking.
Facebook told CNBC it charges businesses to send certain messages to customers, like boarding passes or product receipts, but that costs vary on the market and quantity of messages sent. It didn’t provide details on what additional services it plans to charge for, or how much they’ll cost, just that it plans to change how it charges businesses.
Facebook said it will use some of the revenue from business sales to continue to offer free services to its more than two billion WhatsApp users.
Mean-while, India on Friday reported 54,366 new Covid-19 cases, taking the total caseload to 77,61,312, while 690 fatalities pushed the death toll to 1,17,306, according to data from the Union Health Ministry.
There are 6,95,509 active coronavirus cases in the country while 69,48,497 people have recovered from the disease, the data stated.
Senior officials said the government is “committed” to provide the fundingrequired to vaccinate India’s population against Covid-19, but is yet to set aside any amount for this purpose. With various vaccine candidates progressing to late-stage human trials here, some experts feel the cost that the Centre will bear may become clearer by early 2021.
“We are yet to get the exact estimates on the cost of vaccine shots. At this stage, no amount has been set aside for vaccination, but the government has committed that whatever is required for the purpose will be provided. That commitment is there,” a senior Finance Ministry official told.
According to Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan, “sufficient” financial resources are available with the government to go in for procurement for mass vaccination against. The final cost will depend on a variety of factors, including how many doses are to be given of the vaccines that are approved and how the candidates under testing turn out.
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