The latest feature added to WhatsApp is Channels, a new broadcasting tool that helps people and organizations share updates with their followers. Channels are described by WhatsApp’s parent company Meta as a “trusted and private way to receive important updates from individuals and organizations.”
The new feature will be accessible via a dedicated Updates tab within WhatsApp, and channel admins will be able to share messages, photos, videos, stickers and polls with their followers. Examples provided by WhatsApp include sports teams sharing game and player updates, getting news from local officials, updates from your favorite creators, and hobby page groups.
Users can search for their favorite organizations, sports teams and more with the search box on WhatsApp. Channel history will be stored for no longer than 30 days, and admins will have their phone numbers and profile photos hidden from followers for security reasons. Channel admins will also have the ability to block post forwarding and screenshots.
It’s worth mentioning that the channels won’t feature end-to-end encryption at launch, although WhatsApp is exploring bringing end-to-end encryption channels to a limited audience in the future.
Channels is still in development and is expected to launch in WhatsApp beta for Android, iOS and desktop. It is expected to debut with select organizations in Colombia and Singapore before a wider rollout in the coming months.
In related news, WhatsApp also announced a new feature for its app that will finally bring the ability to send high-definition photos to Android and iOS devices.
WhatsApp HD photos in beta version
The feature is currently being tested by a small group of WhatsApp beta users and will use a lightweight compression algorithm to preserve their quality as much as possible. Users can choose between standard and HD quality when sending a photo in their chats instead of the current auto, best quality and data saver options.
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