Technology company Meta (USA) on June 7 began testing a new feature called Channels on the WhatsApp application with the goal of attracting more users.
The icon of the WhatsApp application on the phone screen. Photo: AFP/VNA
Meta says about the appearance, the messages of the new Channels feature will show up in a new toolbar called Updates. This is different from the newly updated Meta feature on Instagram, where notifications are communicated via direct message.
The audience using this feature that Meta targets are organizations such as NGOs, medical research organizations and fact-checking agencies, verifying the accuracy of information.
Meta says with the new feature, admins can submit text, photos, videos, stickers and polls. Notably, these are one-way conversations so users won't be able to reply to those messages.
While users can join channels via an invite link, WhatsApp is also building a directory to find different channels according to interests, sports teams and local officials.
Meta is now launching Channels in select markets like Colombia and Singapore with early adopters like the Singapore Heart Foundation and Colombia Check fact-checkers. The company says a number of well-known international partners are also involved, including the International Rescue Committee (IRC), the World Health Organization (WHO) and famous football clubs such as FC Barcelona and FC Barcelona. Manchester City.
In the coming months, Meta plans to expand the availability of this feature to more countries, with the ultimate goal of giving any user the ability to set up their own Channels.
Channels is WhatsApp's new attempt at facilitating large group chats after Communities now has more than 2 billion users.
