WhatsApp removes $1 subscription fee

WhatsApp, the popular instant messaging application of Facebook, will remove its annual subscription fee of $0.99, in an effort to remove the barriers some users faced in using the service. Previously, WhatsApp had been free for the first year, with the fee charged for every subsequent year.

"It really doesn't work that well in a lot of countries and we just don't want people to think that their communications with the world will be cut off," Mr. Koum said at the Digital Life Design (DLD) conference in Munich, Germany.

Instead, the company will begin experimenting with ways of generating revenue via the myriad businesses that use the messaging app.

"Starting this year, we will test tools that allow you to use WhatsApp to communicate with businesses and organisations that you want to hear from. "That could mean communicating with your bank about whether a recent transaction was fraudulent, or with an airline about a delayed flight. We all get these messages elsewhere today – through text messages and phone calls – so we want to test new tools to make this easier to do on WhatsApp, while still giving you an experience without third-party ads and spam."

Currently nearly a billion people around the world use the app to stay in touch with friends, family and even patients.

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