09/16/2021 15:01
Clarín.com
Technology
Updated 09/16/2021 3:01 PM
WhatsApp is
working on a new function designed so that users can more easily discover which businesses - which already have a presence in
WhatsApp Business
- have close to their home.
Basically, the popular messaging service will implement
a kind of "Yellow Pages" based on the location of the users
and that, at the moment, is in the testing phase.
When accessing this directory, the user will see a list with all the businesses close to where they are.
These will be differentiated according to their category:
restaurants, shops, cafes or local services
.
It is something similar to the
Telegram
function
that allows us to find users and groups close to our location.
As Will Cathcart explained, this new system could be "the main way to start a commerce process on WhatsApp."
The option of "nearby businesses" of WhatsApp.
Initially, and as happened with WhatsApp Bussines,
the test will be carried out in São Paulo
(Brazil) and will include thousands of businesses in certain neighborhoods.
Upon his arrival in other countries, Cathcart says that India and Indonesia are good candidates to expand the role.
Cathcart, who is Director of WhatsApp, also assured in his official Twitter profile that "like everything we do on WhatsApp, [this system] we have created privately: we
do not register your location or the companies you see
."
I'm excited we're starting to pilot a local business directory within @WhatsApp.
This will help you find and contact local businesses, like your neighborhood coffee shop, florist, clothing store and more.https: //t.co/kNvUtn7FWR
- Will Cathcart (@wcathcart) September 15, 2021
This new movement by WhatsApp aims to
enhance its section dedicated to business
.
Since its launch, WhatsApp Business has become a
reference for the monetization
of the service that WhatsApp pursues through its API, since the companies that integrate it into their services pay to use it.
In this sense, it was mentioned on several occasions that the ads will reach WhatsApp at some point.
Cathcart said in this regard that "there is definitely a route in the ads, which is the main business model of Facebook, which in the long term I think will in one way or another
be part of the business model of WhatsApp
."
Multi-device mode comes to the iPhone
On the other hand, WhatsApp began to distribute its promoted multi-device mode that it had implemented in July in beta.
The first to try it are Apple devices with the
iOS operating system with
version 2.21.180.14
, available from the App Store download platform;
while for
Android
there are no definitions yet.
IPhone users who have
WhatsApp version 2.21.180.14
(stable)
installed
can now access the beta of the multi-
device
mode.
This mode allows us to link several devices
without the need for the iPhone to be connected to WhatsApp
.
As in services such as WhatsApp Web, it is necessary to
scan a QR code
to complete the link.
Apple users still hope to be able to use WhatsApp on iPads.
Photo: Shutterstock
In principle, we can
connect an iPhone to the Mac computer
through this device mode, being able to use WhatsApp without the need for the smartphone to be connected to the network.
As there is no native
iPad
app yet
, it is not possible to use multi-device mode on iPadOS, at the moment.
However,
this function has certain limitations
.
For example, the user will be able to connect "independently" from other devices, but
it will not be possible from a second iPhone phone
.
The next expected leap is the arrival of the stable version of the multi-device mode to the iPad thanks to the native app, one of the great innovations of the app that is expected for the remainder of 2021.
SL
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