WhatsApp to allow messaging with third-party apps

WhatsApp, a messaging platform owned by Meta, is rolling out a new feature to allow users to send and receive messages from third-party platforms.

The feature is only available to users in the European Union, as the company complies with the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which aims to promote competition in digital marketplaces.

Apart from WhatsApp, Meta is also introducing the same to Facebook Messenger to allow users third-party chats.

Meta also announced its plans to roll out a feature to support third-party video and voice calls in 2027.

Meanwhile, the tech giant has maintained that the privacy and security of WhatsApp users remain its top priority despite the move.

According to details, the messaging platform will notify its users to change the app’s settings once the feature rolls out.

The feature will allow WhatsApp users to activate third-party chats, select which apps they want to connect with and decide how to organise their messages.

While the features are set to be introduced in the EU, Meta has not revealed whether it will be rolled out for users in other regions.

In a separate development, WhatsApp is reportedly testing a new feature allowing users to open status updates directly from the list of people who have viewed their status.

With the latest update, the Meta-owned app is expanding this functionality to the sheet that displays who has seen your status. Now, users will notice a green ring around a contact’s profile picture in the viewer list if that contact has also posted a status update.

According to a report by WABetaInfo, “WhatsApp is testing additional features to enhance the user experience with status updates, focusing on improving visibility and access to new content. Thanks to the WhatsApp beta for Android 2.24.19.4 update, available on the Google Play Store, we discovered that WhatsApp is rolling out the ability to open status updates from the viewer list.”