WhatsApp Breaks Ad-Free Promise: Top Executive Confirms Ads Coming To Some App Areas

Looks like WhatsApp is not sticking by its promise of never showing advertisements. In pure Meta style, the company top's executive, Will Cathcart, recently told a Brazilian publication that WhatsApp is about to embrace advertisements.

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What did WhatsApp head say?

Cathcart told Folha de S. Paulo that WhatsApp would continue to remain ad-free in the app's inbox and inside chats. However, ads will soon become visible in other sections of the app, like Status or Channels.

Just a month ago, when a report surfaced about WhatsApp's ad plans, the Cathcart had fervently denied it, saying that the Financial Times report was false. "We aren't doing this," he had written at that time on X.

Also read: WhatsApp's New Search Feature Makes It Easier To Find Messages Based On Date

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Now, it appears that they are very much doing this. Just because ads appear in non-chat spots on WhatsApp doesn't mean they don't exist - but WhatsApp doesn't see it that way.

"The reason I qualified the answer is that there could be ads in other places ¡ªchannels or statuses. For example, channels might charge people to subscribe, they might be exclusive to paid members, or the owners might want to promote the channel. But no, we won't place ads in the Inbox," he said (translated from Portuguese).

When are ads coming to WhatsApp?

For now, it's unclear when ads would be introduced to Status or Channels sections of WhatsApp. But with Cathcart's confirmation, the move seems inevitable. This isn't the first time Meta-owned WhatsApp is exploring the potential of advertisements.

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Also read: Videos On WhatsApp Now Support Easy Forwarding And Rewinding: How To Access It

In 2019, it was reported that WhatsApp was planning to show ads to users via the Status feature - the Instagram Stories-like feature of WhatsApp.

If ads eventually spilled into your chats, would you still use WhatsApp? Let us know in the comments below. For more in the world of technology and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com and click here for our how-to guides.