Telegram is working on a new revenue stream. Beta testers on iOS have spotted a premium option in version 8.7.2 of the app allowing them to subscribe to a new set of stickers and reactions.
The premium version is not yet operational, but once it does, the company will be able to increase its revenue streams. Founder Pavel Durov said in late 2020 that the company would begin to generate revenue starting last year.
He suggested that the company would start placing ads in large channels and said that Telegram “will add some new features for business teams or power users” that would come with a price.”
Read: Telegram Records 70 Million New Users During WhatsApp Outage
The ads were rolled out to large channels in 2021, but after backlash from users, Telegram said it would develop a way for users to turn them off. Duriv had said that a the parts of Telegram that are free would remain free. The new subscription feature seems to allow users to unlock more features.
It is still not clear when or if Telegram has planned a rollout yet, but if the test is successful, we should expect to see it in the app in the future.
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