One-way Broadcast on WhatsApp: Steals from Telegram

• Facebook-owned Whatsapp copies one-way broadcast feature from Telegram.
• The new update will change the way users receive their information from publishers.
• With this feature, WhatsApp is vulnerable to bullying and stalking as users will have to use their phone numbers for signups.

Gone are those days when innovation was the defining element if the product will thrive in the market or not. Today the trend is different. Now products can steal the best from the rest and integrate into their products to match their competition. Apple copies Android, Instagram copies from Snapchat, Google copies from Alexa, and now, Whatsapp copies from Telegram.

The copy culture isn’t new in Facebook which owns both Instagram and Whatsapp. This week we have seen Whatsapp come out with one-way broadcast communication for its groups - a new feature that looks like a replica of Telegram’s channels.

Telegram platform allows its users to get alerts from a group in the form of a broadcast news feed. These groups use the platform to get updates as a one-way talk from the admin. This feature comes handy with businesses, public interest groups, schools and media companies, which do not necessarily prefer two-way communication. Now WhatsApp too has this group feature.

Publishers and businesses will benefit from this as Whatsapp has a massive user base of a billion people. Although the feature has just launched, the concept isn’t new for its users, and people have been using the platform for similar purposes for some time now. We have already seen journalists and businesses forming communities on WhatsApp and broadcasting regular updates. But this is going to get a lot easier with this new update.

Whatsapp informed about this new feature on their official blog. The post states that this new setting will help communities easily receive the announcements and information from various sources.

Still, there is one problem that highlights the privacy issue on Whatapp. To join a group, users of Whatsapp must share their number which can be then looked up by any of the existing group members. This makes Whatsapp a highly vulnerable platform for bullying and stalking. Telegram, however, resolved this issue by introducing 'usernames,' but the app doesn’t feature anything similar.

As per the latest stats, Whatsapp has more than 1.5 billion active users worldwide compared to Telegram which has just surpassed its tag of 200 million. Although the feature is copied, this will change the way millions of people receive their updates.

Do you think groups on WhatsApp needed this feature? Do let us know what you think about this new update in our comment section. Also, to get instant tech updates, Follow TechNadu’s Facebook page, and Twitter handle.