In 2023, social media platforms faced a challenging year marked by a slowdown in new user growth. Messaging platforms emerged as alternatives offering higher privacy levels, addressing user concerns about social media platforms becoming threats to their privacy and a growing sense of losing control over personal information.
The year witnessed a surge in content creators, accompanied by a significant increase in video content produced on these platforms. Some content, deemed as “obscene, violent, and detrimental to mental health,” led to user discomfort.
These developments prompted some users, especially the younger demographic, to seek alternatives that provide greater privacy comfort and more control over the content they encounter. This shift led users to communicate more with close acquaintances, share more personal content, and embrace disappearing content within 24 hours, giving rise to the prominence of instant messaging platforms.
Instant messaging platforms, such as Telegram and WhatsApp, offered new features, transforming them into spaces for content creators. They allowed content creators to present new content to a specific audience, ensuring engagement and interaction without falling under the control of giant social media algorithms.
Messaging services introduced interaction features reminiscent of social networks, like reaction emojis on messages, available in Telegram, WhatsApp, and Messenger. Telegram innovated with Group Chats, enhancing interaction between content creators and their audience.
WhatsApp, in particular, experienced a remarkable increase in active users, going from 2 billion users in February 2022 to 2.78 billion users in February 2023, a growth of 780 million users in one year. In contrast, Facebook saw an increase of only 64 million users during the same period.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, stated that “WhatsApp will mark a new chapter in Meta’s history,” citing various reasons behind this vision. WhatsApp maintained credibility within Meta’s empire due to end-to-end encryption, assuring users that their messages are secure. Moreover, Meta refrained from displaying ads within WhatsApp, distinguishing it from other social media networks under Meta’s umbrella.
As Facebook and Instagram faced reputation issues, including legal actions related to user data leaks and privacy violations, WhatsApp remained the only platform maintaining credibility within Meta. WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption and the absence of ads contributed to its distinctiveness.
The increasing popularity of content creators on WhatsApp, utilizing Channels as an alternative to Facebook Pages, and businesses connecting directly with consumers through “WhatsApp Business,” contributed to the platform’s success. At the same time, Zuckerberg aimed to increase profits.
Will Cathcart, WhatsApp’s CEO, affirmed that Meta never intends to display ads within personal user conversations. However, the company is exploring the possibility of showing ads in limited areas, such as business chats, content creator channels, and within Status updates, the feature equivalent to social media stories. Cathcart emphasized that WhatsApp completely rules out showing ads in personal conversations as it is not the optimal approach for revenue generation from the service.
Leave a Reply