Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. News

Are you a Facebook Messenger user? You’re now officially one in a billion or so

By

facebook messenger day holiday update 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Facebook Messenger has finally caught up with another Facebook-owned messaging tool, WhatsApp, having secured its billionth active user this month. Growth has been steady, too, with 100 million coming on board in the last three months alone and another 100 million the quarter before that.

This is a big milestone for Facebook, which faced a lot of criticism when it announced that the Messenger app would be spun off from the main Facebook app. Both pieces of mobile software now enjoy more than 1 billion active users each, though there is understandably a lot of cross over between the two.

It’s also part of Facebook’s big push for diversification. Since launching Messenger as its own application, Facebook has also branched out into shopping, customer service, and games, as well as AI chatbot assistants — with mixed success.

Related

Facebook is positioning itself to become a singular destination for many web users. Through the combination of its messaging application and the main Facebook app, it hopes to incorporate just about every service the average user requires when using the internet.

That doesn’t mean it isn’t willing to hedge its bets. Facebook did pay out close to $20 billion for WhatsApp in 2014 (thanks, Recode) and is continuing to develop that service into a strong competitor for Messenger. Indeed, WhatsApp still has the higher user count, though not by much considering Messenger’s recent impressive growth.

Considering that Facebook’s messaging app has now reached relative parity with its general Facebook app, it will be interesting to see whether either app grows significantly in the near future, or if Messenger’s explosive growth will now taper off as it reaches a saturation point among Facebook users.

Of course, there are still many Facebook users out there. The main Facebook website is closing in on 2 billion users, so perhaps CEO Mark Zuckerberg can whip up some magic to get everyone to migrate to the application instead.

Editors’ Recommendations

Topics
Jon Martindale
Jon Martindale
Computing Coordinator
Jon Martindale is the Evergreen Coordinator for Computing, overseeing a team of writers addressing all the latest how to…
You can now use the Add Yours sticker on Reels for Facebook and Instagram
A series of three mobile screenshots on a gray background showing the new Add Yours sticker for Facebook Reels.

As of today, Facebook and IG creators have six new features they can use for their Reels content. But of the six, the most intriguing feature is support for a sticker prompt that was first used and popularized in Instagram Stories.

Meta announced via a Facebook video post that, in addition to all of its other new Reels-focused features, it would now offer support for its Add Yours sticker prompt in Reels for both Instagram and Facebook.

Read more
Facebook Messenger finally starts testing end-to-end encryption for all chats
facebook messenger testing end to encryption all chats default

Meta has announced it will be testing default end-to-end encryption on Facebook Messenger. The social media company said in a press release on Thursday that testing has already begun "between some people" earlier this week, and that it will be working to make the privacy feature default for all messages and calls in 2023.

If you're part of the test group, your frequent chats will be automatically end-to-end encrypted, thereby rendering end-to-end encryption non-optional. This means that any conversation between you and a friend or family member can't be accessed by Meta or anyone else. The only way Meta will see your messages is if you report them to the company if they threaten your safety in any way.

Read more
Facebook Messenger app adds calling, following WhatsApp’s lead
Facebook Messenger app with calling

Meta, Facebook's parent company, is rolling out the Calls tab to the Facebook Messenger app on Android and iOS. The move takes a page out of WhatsApp's playbook, making audio and video calls with friends and family a lot easier for Messenger users.

Not every Messenger user will see the Calls tab in the app immediately. But the lucky users who do will find it located between the Chats and People tabs on the lower bar on the app's screen.

Read more