Facebook Will Merge Messenger With WhatsApp And Instagram Messaging

Facebook has plans to let users send messages across its platforms: WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook Messenger.

While the three apps will still remain separate, the company will bring them together under one mutual messaging platform. With this change, users can send from one social network to another, for example, you can talk to your Messenger-only friends without having to leave WhatsApp.

The tech giant is still working on this change, but it said the apps will ensure that only participants of the conversations can view the messages with end-to-end encryption. According to The New York Times, it was revealed by the four members of this project said Facebook plans to have the work done by the end of 2019 or early 2020.

As stated by a Facebook spokesperson, users want to send messages fast, simply, in a private and reliable way, which the company is aiming to bring them the best messaging experiences.

This strategy also shows Mark Zuckerberg’s intentions to have more control over the companies that Facebook spent billions of dollars to acquire. In 2012, Facebook bought Instagram for $1 billion, and in 2014, it acquired WhatsApp for $19 billion. Reports also revealed that these companies’ founder couldn’t stand Zuckerberg, resulting in their resignation. In particular, Instagram said goodbye to its co-founder Mike Krieger and Kevin Systrom, and WhatsApp saw the departures of Jan Koum and Brian Acton, while Oculus’ co-founder Brendan Iribe and Palmer Luckey left.

By this integration, Facebook can earn more profit from ads by making users spend more time using its messaging app instead of other services from Google and Apple, according to respondents to NYT.

However, with a series of scandals over data privacy and misuse, some Facebook users are probably not so excited about the news. So far, it’s unclear how the company will handle user information among the three apps.

Matthew Green, John Hopkins University cryptographer, shared on Twitter his worries that user data could be shared among the platforms and the security of WhatsApp’s encryption could be weakened.

Also, some analysts think that it would also be harder for regulators to break up the company when it integrates Facebook Messenger with Instagram and WhatsApp. Analyst Brian Wieser of Pivotal Research Group.

Mark Zuckerberg - Facebook CEO

Electronic Privacy Information Center, Color of Change, and other advocacy groups sent a letter to the FTC with requests to “unwind the acquisition of WhatsApp and Instagram.” Right now, the FTC is also conducting an investigation following accusations that Facebook violated the agreement with the US government to keep user data private.

The company expects messaging app will play a more significant role in its future since more and more of its users are moving from sharing publicly on their walls to privately through messaging apps.