WhatsApp Announces ‘Free Lifet...
WhatsApp Announces ‘Free Lifetime Subscription’ for Indians
WhatsApp is the most
popular messaging app on smartphones today. The multiplatform app has
caused a serious dent in the SMS revenue of mobile companies. It is
beloved by many for its convenience and features and is a kind of mini
social network. The company has a good news in store for Indians; it
won’t be charging any sum for renewal of subscription of services.
Vice President of WhatsApp, Neeraj
Arora, said that the company understands the low concentration of credit
cards in the country, and paying for a service won’t be an option for
many. The company usually charges $1 every year to renew the
subscription, which is a fairly cheap price. But for Indians, WhatsApp
said the magic word – Free!
Mr. Arora was speaking at his alma mater
Indian School of Business, where he conversed on a lot of topics. He
recalled that the founders of WhatsApp were crazy, and he got into the
company by forcing his way in. He took up the bits that the founders
were not interested in, like the business aspect of things. The company
was recently acquired by Facebook for a gargantuan price of $19 billion.
The future of WhatsApp was also
discussed, and he said that the company will remain the same even after
the acquisition. The company will not be allowing ads in the app as they
believe that it will not be a pleasant experience for the users.
Considering the massive seven crore (70 million) users that it has in
this country, WhatsApp may not want to give them an opportunity to
consider its competitors.