Just last week, the European Union identified six major tech companies as potential gatekeepers under the Digital Markets Act (DMA). Remarkably, just a few days after this announcement, a beta version of WhatsApp introduced a new “third-party chats” (Cross-Platform Messaging) screen, marking an early implementation of the EU’s new regulatory framework, as initially reported by WABetaInfo.
This new screen appears in a development version of the Android app for the popular messaging service. It’s a new section that is separate from your default WhatsApp inbox. Right now, there’s nothing to see, but the idea is that WhatsApp will let you open a dedicated menu to see incoming messages from people who are using other messaging apps.When the EU named the six gatekeepers — Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, ByteDance, Meta and Microsoft — it broke down the list in different categories with core platform services in each category. That’s why some companies appear in several lists.
Meta’s Pinnacle Position in Messaging Apps: The Cross-Platform Advantage
The EU has introduced the term N-IICS, which stands for Number-Independent Interpersonal Communication Service, as regulatory terminology to distinguish messaging services from traditional text messages. Within the scope of the DMA, the two messaging apps affected are WhatsApp and Messenger. In 2022, the EU emphasized that messaging platforms’ interoperability was a crucial criterion for messaging services provided by gatekeepers. In simpler terms, users of Signal, Telegram, or Snapchat will soon be able to send messages to WhatsApp and Messenger users without the need to create accounts on those specific platforms.
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A Step Toward Interoperability
Hence today’s new Android beta of WhatsApp. The WhatsApp development team has started work on interoperability as Meta doesn’t have much time to add support for third-party messengers. Gatekeepers have six months to comply with the full set of obligations, meaning that interoperability should be live in March 2024.
You may wonder why Apple’s messaging protocol iMessage isn’t part of the core messaging services. Apple says that its messaging service doesn’t meet the 45 million+ user threshold — at least, not yet.
Meta’s approach to implementing interoperability in WhatsApp, especially concerning advanced features like file sharing, video calls, and audio messages, will be intriguing to observe. Ensuring that end-to-end encryption functions seamlessly with third-party services is also a significant challenge. In essence, this marks the initial stage of an essential technical project for the WhatsApp team.