WhatsApp introduces channels: you can now follow Barca and ManU in Messenger

• WhatsApp announces channels, a new way to connect with multiple people.
• You can use the feature to receive status updates from celebrities, clubs and organizations.
• For the launch there are channels from FC Barcelona and Manchester United, among others.

So far, WhatsApp was primarily intended for private conversations. For years, however, developer Meta has been trying to make Messenger attractive for companies and organizations as well. WhatsApp Business and the new community area are just two examples. The WhatsApp channels that have now been announced are another.

As with Telegram, you can now follow individual, company or organization channels. You will then receive messages from them in a chat. But you probably can’t answer that. At least that’s what a teaser video for the function suggests. Because it’s not available yet. First, WhatsApp wants to test them in Colombia and Singapore. The rollout will then be extended to other countries in the next few months.

At the start, channels from the WHO as well as FC Barcelona and Manchester United should be available to you. For a full list of WhatsApp channels available at launch, see the linked article.

You should then be able to search all WhatsApp channels for interesting offers via a catalogue. By the way, the messages shared in a channel can be viewed for 30 days. The administrators can prohibit screenshots and forwarding on their channels. You can subscribe and/or unfollow channels via a new tab called “Updates”. This will also contain the status messages of your friends in the future.

Also interesting…

With groups, communities and channels, WhatsApp now offers a number of ways to get in touch with several people at the same time. But when should you use which means? In the linked article we explain the differences between channel, community and group.