Meta announced major new WhatsApp updates - here’s how they will affect you and what it means for your privacy.

Shares of Meta Platforms, the top performing stock in the Magnificent 7 this year, got a boost Monday as the tech giant announced plans to introduce paid advertising to WhatsApp, opening up a new revenue stream.

The cofounders of WhatsApp resisted ads in the app for years, including after the company was acquired by Meta for $22 billion in 2014. Brian Acton and Jan Koum left the company in 2017 and 2018, respectively, and on Monday Meta introduced ads in the “Status” feature as well as sponsored Channels in the the “Updates” tab of WhatsApp.

Ads will appear exclusively in the ‘Updates tab on WhatsApp, which includes the Status and Channels features used by about 1.5 billion users daily. Businesses can promote products or services through Status ads,

The Updates tab, which holds layers such as Status and Channels, will host Meta’s WhatsApp monetisation efforts. At least for now.

Por TheWhatsApp informó el lunes que los usuarios comenzarán a ver anuncios en partes de la aplicación de mensajería, ya que su propietario Meta Platforms

WhatsApp is testing ads in Status and paid channel subscriptions, all inside the Updates tab. Private messages remain encrypted and ad-free.

There's no shortage of reasons to stay off the Meta ecosystem, which includes Facebook and Instagram, but there are some places where WhatsApp remains the main form of text-based communication. The app is a great alternative to SMS,