Meta is presently focusing on making WhatsApp more compatible with other platforms, so users can send direct messages to others on Signal and other similar services.
In the most recent iOS beta version of WhatsApp, the "WABetaInfo" team website tracked this update. While the tip from the site that specializes in tracking WhatsApp changes didn't reveal much about the impending feature, it did demonstrate how it works, which is what will make it a game-changer for messaging apps.
The most recent iOS beta version of WhatsApp has a new feature named "Third Party Chats," as reported by "WABetaInfo." Users will soon be able to access concealed chats from other messaging services like Discord and Telegram.
According to a screenshot in the article, there will be a dedicated area in the Chats tab for all external chats. Users will clearly have the ability to disengage this function at any time and have manual control over it. Furthermore, SMS messages received from... Additionally, all data collected from third-party sources is securely encrypted from beginning to end.
The precise number of platforms that will be able to communicate with WhatsApp is unknown.
Big IT businesses will have to revamp a lot of their services to meet the new regulations, which were approved by the EU's Antitrust Authority for the Digital Markets Act (DMA), thus if Meta plans to provide this feature, it will be the first to do so. As a result of these laws, Meta is working to integrate WhatsApp with other messaging services.
Reason being, it is still not clear how the major messaging platforms will achieve the DMA's goal of interoperability, which would eliminate the need for users to download an additional app simply to communicate with their friends and family. Meta, on the other hand, would like WhatsApp to implement this update first.
The DMA, which aims to reduce the influence of large tech companies—popularly referred to as "digital gatekeepers"—over the sector and its consumers, was enacted in 2022.
One of the new regulations states that messaging platform owners (like Meta) must enable users to communicate with each other through third-party applications. European Union regulators have expressed disapproval of how these services function independently of each other and their rules, which they claim forces users to conform to.