Meta rolls out WhatsApp Channels to 150 countries worldwide

WhatsApp has announced that it is expanding its Channels function to include broadcasted messages. Channels will be available to all customers in more than 150 countries in the coming weeks, according to the company.

Mark Zuckerberg announced the feature's availability on his new WhatsApp channel.

“Excited to introduce you all to WhatsApp Channels, a new private way for you to get updates from people and organizations you follow. I’m starting this channel to share Meta news and updates,” he said.

Meta originally provided WhatsApp Channels to customers in Colombia and Singapore in June. It offered this functionality to seven additional nations in July.

The Channels function is located in a different page of the app, and others cannot see the channels you follow. Furthermore, admins and followers will not be able to see personal information from your account, such as your phone number.

While one-to-many communication via broadcast messages remains the key element of a channel, the firm is introducing additional interactions, such as the option to respond with emojis. Under the message, users will be able to view the overall number of reactions.

WhatsApp's global debut will include an updated directory for finding channels based on your location. This list may be sorted by new, most active, and most popular. When users forward a channel update to a group or a person, it includes a link back to the channel.

WhatsApp is giving the option for administrators to modify a message for up to 30 days. The chat app also allows you to modify messages sent to individuals or groups, but only for 15 minutes. Notably, Meta continues to limit the ability to create a channel to certain persons or groups. According to the firm, it intends to ultimately allow anybody to launch a channel.