WhatsApp, owned by Meta, has introduced a new feature called Channels in India and over 150 countries. This feature allows users to communicate through one-way channels, making it easier to send messages to large groups, similar to Instagram’s Broadcast channel.
WhatsApp emphasizes the privacy of Channels, ensuring that followers’ identities are kept confidential. Channels enable administrators to share various content types while protecting privacy.
To access Channels, there’s a dedicated tab named “Updates,” separate from personal chats. Channels can be discovered through searchable directories and can be filtered by country, activity level, popularity, or recency.
Users can react to updates with emojis, and administrators can edit updates within 30 days before automatic deletion. WhatsApp is also working on features to prevent message accumulation, and administrators can control who can follow their channel and its discoverability.
It’s important to note that Channels don’t have end-to-end encryption due to their wide audience focus.
