WhatsApp Revenue Explodes, But Where Does It Come From ?

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A week ago, Meta Group reported its third-quarter financial results. And as we mentioned in a previous post, the group’s revenues reached $40.589 billion, up 19% year-on-year. Profit, meanwhile, was up 35%. And while advertising remains Meta’s primary source of revenue, non-advertising revenues are up sharply.

Specifically, Meta reports that non-advertising revenue for its family of apps was $434 million, up 48%. And the main driver of that growth was WhatsApp. As a reminder, WhatsApp is free, but it also doesn’t display ads (unlike Facebook Messenger). But to generate revenue from this app, Meta offers services that allow businesses to communicate with their customers, or potential customers.

A vision that is coming to fruition 10 years later?

As a reminder, Meta acquired WhatsApp for $22 billion in 2014. In 2016, the app changed its business model, becoming completely free. And instead of displaying ads, the group instead started working on communication tools between businesses and their customers. “This could be communicating with your bank to find out if a recent transaction was fraudulent, or with an airline about a delayed flight,” WhatsApp explained at the time. Today, that vision is coming to fruition.

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Otherwise, the Meta group also displays “Click-to-WhatsApp” ads on its other platforms. In essence, these are classic ads that include a button to contact the advertiser on WhatsApp. And according to Meta, this type of advertising, a share of the revenue of which can be attributed to the messaging service, is also growing strongly.

Otherwise, today, WhatsApp is also a key part of Meta’s strategy in the field of artificial intelligence. Indeed, it is via its messaging services, including WhatsApp, that the group deploys its ChatGPT competitor, Meta AI. In fact, in Q3, Meta AI surpassed 500 million users.

• In Q3, Meta apps' non-advertising revenue grew 48%, driven primarily by WhatsApp
• WhatsApp is free and does not display ads, but it does offer services that allow businesses to communicate with their customers
• Otherwise, WhatsApp has also become a centerpiece of Meta's artificial intelligence strategy

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