WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum said he planned to operate the firm "independently and autonomously". He will also become a member of Facebook's board of directors. WhatsApp has over 450 million monthly users & according to the company, is growing at a rate of over 1 million new users per day.
WhatsApp customers avoid regular SMS text messaging charges. The basic application is a free download for all the major smart phone users with an optional upgraded subscription service that is only $1 per year.
The user enters the phone number of any website or service, then unlike SMS, the user logs into their Facebook account and gives the website permission to send messages to their WhatsApp account.
Like any other Facebook application the user is able to allow or deny access to their account, providing complete control over who is allowed to send messages. Obviously this is a huge improvement over SMS, eliminating the spam problem inherent with normal texting.
MMS, IM, Email or WhatsApp?
The multimedia form of SMS of course is MMS, the same drawback is still there - cost. There is still IM and email available on smart phones.
How do they stack up? Instant messaging and email on mobile devices also have their own weaknesses. They are not as practical as SMS and MMS. You have to log in (and often re-log in) to your account before you can send messages, you have to manually add your friends to the contact list. Then, of course there’s the problem of having to join several IM sites and install their IM clients to be able to connect with all of your contacts.
Even with multi-network instant messenger clients like imo.im, you still have to register and log into all of your accounts. WhatsApp acts as a multi-platform messaging system that features the best of both worlds – the simplicity of SMS/MMS, the power of IM, coupled with enhanced security and ease of use.
Cool WhatsApp Features
After installation, the client scans your address book to find people who already use WhatsApp and automatically adds them to your Favourites. To edit the list simply Tap the “Edit” button. The delete button will now be visible on the left.
To rearrange the list, just tap and drag the bars on the right. The “Contacts” tab mirrors your address book. You can search for a name, send a message, or invite the person to get the WhatsApp client if they don’t already have it.
Another awesome feature of WhatsApp is the ability to create group chats. This feature is ‘hidden’ at the top of the “Chats” tab, along with the “Broadcast Message” feature. The “Broadcast Message” feature allows you to send one message to groups. To broadcast your message, choose the recipients from your contact list, tap “Done“, write the message, and send.
But £11.4Billion? The estimated revenue is projected to be £3 Billion annually and is expected to grow exponentially. It appears that Facebook has picked another huge revenue winner.
No comments:
Post a Comment