Details of WhatsApp ‘s upcoming ‘ Newsletter ‘ feature were discovered in the code of its latest beta update
WhatsApp is implementing a function in a new update of the beta version for Android that will allow the dissemination of informative bulletins or ‘Newsletter’ , with which information and announcements can be sent to an unlimited number of users in a safe and private way, being the users who choose which newsletters they want to receive updates from.
The instant messaging platform deployed its Communities function in August last year , a feature that improves the organization and transmission of information by allowing conversation groups that revolve around common themes and interests to come together in the same space.
Now, WhatsApp continues to incorporate new tools that improve the communication of information directly. To do this, it has introduced the dissemination of ‘Newsletter’ or informative bulletins in the latest update of the Beta version of Android 2.23.5.3, as WaBetaInfo has been able to verify.
Name in process
Although the exact name of the function has not been discovered, so ‘Newsletter’ is a code name, it defines the purpose of this tool. It is a function focused on the transmission of information from one to many so that users can receive useful updates from people and groups of interest to them. In this sense, it is the users who choose who they want to receive newsletters from directly from WhatsApp .
A novelty of this tool is that it will allow you to reach an indefinite number of people. However, this implies that the information transmitted through this channel is not protected by end-to-end encryption as it is a one-way transmission, as explained in WaBetaInfo.
However, it continues to be a secure and private informative method since the telephone number and the data of the users who subscribe to a newsletter will be kept hidden. Similarly, the creators of these newsletters will not be able to see which users join, nor will they show data from the person who created the newsletter. All this, regardless of whether these users are in the contact list.
On the other hand, as shown in the code of the update, the newsletters will be located in a totally separate section from the private chats, located inside the Status tab. In this way, they will be a personal space in which users will decide which newsletters to follow and when to see the information. Likewise, the content will always be displayed chronologically as information is received.
easy search
Likewise, this new function will include identifiers, so that users can find the ‘Newsletter’ they wish to join by searching for it with a username directly on the platform.
This new dissemination tool acquires advantages over functions such as Communities, since, although it is useful when organizing groups, the limitation of ten group chats of up to 512 participants each does not allow information to reach more users. In addition, in the Communities the telephone numbers of the participating members are not kept hidden.
The ‘Newsletter’ function is still in its early stages of development, so it is not available at the moment and more details will be revealed in the next WhatsApp updates through the Google Play Beta Program. (Europe Press)