According to a post by Digital Trends, Google is planning to
acquire the most famous cross-platform messaging app – WhatsApp in a reportedly
billion dollar deal. The site reports, that the discussion has been ongoing for
quite a while with the final price being the thorn in the agreement, with
WhatsApp playing “hardball” to drive up the price.
WhatsApp has already shown the world that its monetization
scheme is extremely effective. Its yearly but nominal $0.99 subscription fee
keeps the service ad-free. Behind the scenes however, WhatsApp also generates
revenue through profitable partnerships with international telecommunications
companies. Whatever Whatsapp is doing is working, it is doing it right, with
declining SMS usage around the world being directly linked to the success of
the app.
With Facebook taking a huge step forward in the messaging
ecosystem, via Facebook Home and the continuously improving Messenger (with
free voice calls), Google’s attempt to acquire WhatsApp feel like steps in the
proper direction.
It is also important to remember that, according to many
reports Google is set to discard its numerous messaging services for an all in
one – Google Babble (or Babel). Google Babble is expected to be revealed in May at thee
Google I/O event. If Google wants WhatsApp to be a part of Babble, it may well
have to hurry and get the deal done and dusted.
Will Google continue support for iOS (remember, Sparrow the
mail client?)? Will Google integrate it into the Android OS? All these question
remain unanswered and only time will tell. Nevertheless, if Google does manage
this acquisition, it will be a great step forward for Google in the world of
communication.
So far Google and WhatsApp have not released any statements regarding the rumor.
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