To comply with European regulations, WhatsApp is preparing to make its application compatible with its competitors, such as Messenger, Telegram and Discord.
Last September, we mentioned a previous beta version of WhatsApp which seemed to open the door to discussions from other messaging applications, like Messenger or even Discord.
In reality, Meta is not working on this light-hearted functionality: the firm must comply with European DMA (Digital Markets Act) regulations, targeting tech giants in their anti-competitive practices.
WhatsApp prepares to “welcome” its competitors
A new beta version of WhatsApp has just been deployed on iOS via the TestFlight program. This brings the “third party chats” function to iPhone users before being deployed in the coming months for everyone.
A new window should allow you to chat through other messaging apps. Technically, WhatsApp and its competitors could rely on RCS to offer such interoperability, but we are still waiting to see how this will work technically. However, we know that the functionality will be optional and will guarantee the functionality of end-to-end encryption.
In this context, all instant messaging applications could become simple “clients”, each user being able to choose the user experience they want for each of them. Obviously, each application will retain its own functionalities, and it is a safe bet that these “third-party discussions” only offer basic functions.