The WhatsApp third-party chat feature is preparing for rollout as it is currently undergoing beta testing. This feature will help WhatsApp comply with the EU’s interoperability laws, and it will only be available to users in this region. With this feature in place, WhatsApp aims to allow its users to receive and send messages to users of other messaging platforms.
Once this feature rolls out for usage globally, it’ll permit WhatsApp to receive messages from Telegram, Signal, and other messaging apps. The feature will also let WhatsApp users send messages to others that use these third-party messaging platforms. You might be wondering why WhatsApp wants to provide its users with such a feature and how it will solve any existing issues that users face.
Well, WhatsApp isn’t bringing this feature to users at their free will, hence the reason it’ll only be available in the EU region. Last year, the EU tagged WhatsApp as a gatekeeper app, meaning that it provides a channel which connects businesses with their target customers. The law in the EU requires that apps with such ability be interoperable, meaning that they can be accessed via any other app that offers similar services.
For this reason, the WhatsApp third-party chat feature aims to provide a means for users to send and receive messages from other platforms. One area that WhatsApp is keeping as a priority while developing this feature is security. Messages sent to other platforms using this feature will support end-to-end encryption, but this might vary from platform to platform.
At this moment, a handful of beta testers in the EU region are testing this feature. We might have to wait for a while before we begin to see this WhatsApp third-party app feature rollout to users in the EU and its member states. Once available, it will become available via an OTA upgrade to the app on mobile and desktop platforms.