It’s been a busy day for WhatsApp Messenger. The popular instant messaging application has officially started a subscription-based payment model for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch messaging users. WhatsAppers will still have the free year to start with, and then the fee of $0.99 will apply after the first year.
This isn’t really a surprise, however. We’ve reported on the probability of WhatsApp Messenger’s iOS subscription fee before when it was announced in March by CEO Jam Koum. The app is already on a subscription basis on Android, Windows Phone, and BlackBerry.
This comes at a time when most apps such as KakaoTalk and Line have opted instead to charge for in-app purchases rather than for the app itself.
That isn’t all the changes affecting the iOS version of WhatsApp Messenger, however. The app also received an update that allows users on iPhone to send multiple photos in the same message, use custom URL-schemes for third-party apps, and back up conversation history to iCloud through the Settings >> Chat Settings >> Chat Backup menu.
Other apps such as Kik Messenger and Viber are still available for free but also have no in-app purchasable services. In the case of Viber, however, we were able to confirm with Viber CEO Talmon Marco in an earlier interview that in-app purchases are forthcoming.