Telegram has over 700 million monthly active users and is introducing a premium tier with additional features as the instant messaging platform attempts to monetize a portion of its large user base. The company did not say how much the premium tier costs, but the monthly subscription appears to be in the $4.99 to $6 range.
The premium tier expands and improves the messaging app, which surpassed 500 million monthly active users in January 2021. Telegram Premium, for example, allows users to send files up to 4 GB (up from 2 GB) and supports faster downloads, according to Telegram.
Customers who pay will also be able to follow up to 1,000 channels, up from 500 for free users, and create up to 20 chat folders with up to 200 chats each. Telegram Premium users will also be able to add up to four accounts and pin up to ten chats in the app.
The move is an attempt by the Dubai-based company to keep its development "driven primarily by its users, not advertisers," according to the company. It's also the first time a premium tier has been introduced by an instant messaging app with hundreds of millions of users. Some of Telegram's main competitors, including Signal, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Apple's Messages, and Google's Messages, do not have a premium tier.
Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov stated earlier this month that the decision to launch a premium tier was made in response to user demand for more storage/bandwidth.
"After some consideration, we realised that the only way to give our most demanding fans more while keeping our existing features free is to make those raised limits a paid option," he explained.
Some analysts had hoped that Telegram's blockchain token project would allow it to monetize the platform. However, following several delays and regulatory issues, Telegram announced in 2020 that it had abandoned the project and offered to return the $1.2 billion raised from investors.
Telegram raised over $1 billion in March 2021 from a variety of investors, including Mubadala and Abu Dhabi Catalyst Partners, by selling 5-year pre-IPO convertible bonds.
"Today is an important day in Telegram's history — not only marking a new milestone, but also the beginning of Telegram's sustainable monetization," the company said in a blog post on Sunday.
The premium version costs $6 for iPhone users in India. Alex Barredo, a technology commentator based in Spain, reported a monthly cost of €5.49 ($5.77). A spokesperson for Telegram did not respond to a request for comment.
Premium users will also be able to convert voice messages to text, access exclusive stickers and reactions, and use animated images as profile photos. They will also be provided with an ad-free experience. (In some markets, sponsored messages are broadcast through large, public one-to-many channels.)
Durov has promised to keep a number of core app features free for users while also developing new features for the non-paying audience.
On Sunday, the company announced the launch of a feature called join requests, which will allow all users to join a public group without the need for an invite link. Another new feature for free users will allow verified groups and channels to display their badge at the top of the chat. The new update also allows animations to be rendered at 120 frames per second for new iPads and iPhones.
"Over 100 fixes and optimizations to the mobile and desktop apps — eliminating bugs, improving speed, and expanding minor features," Telegram said.
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| Image: Bernstein |
Analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein reported in a note to clients in May of this year that Telegram's features were becoming "increasingly competitive." "While WhatsApp and Messenger continue to account for the majority of messaging app downloads in our sample group, Telegram has surpassed both apps, particularly Messenger," they wrote.
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