Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:FB) chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has launched a new effort to entice businesses to use WhatsApp.
The new service, called WhatsApp Cloud API, is part of parent Meta's strategy to increase the messaging platform's revenue-generating potential.
At a Meta event, Zuckerberg said the new service will enable businesses to customise their WhatsApp experience and speed up their response time to customers "in just a few minutes.".
Even as Meta tries to boost revenue from WhatsApp, the tech giant has been hemorrhaging from its virtual reality and augmented reality division.
Meta's $27.9bn revenue for the first quarter of 2022 was slightly below analyst expectations, with revenue growth the slowest in ten years.
Zuckerberg plans to open the mobile messaging platform to businesses of all sizes globally in order to further boost the Meta-WhatsApp business integration.
"This is an important step to help more businesses connect with people and help more people message the businesses that they want to support, big and small," Zuckerberg said.
"For our partners, this new service will eliminate costly server expenses and give them instant access to new features," he added.
Currently, Meta's messaging service connects with more than 1bn business accounts every week.
A number of paid features are also to feature on WhatsApp, as part of a premium service aimed at small businesses, according to VP product and design Ami Vora.
In addition to managing chats across 10 devices, businesses can share click-to-chat links with customers that they can customise and post on their websites, said Vora.
This is not the first time WhatsApp's revenue-generating potential has been identified.
WhatsApp was acquired by Meta, formerly called Facebook, in 2014 for US$19bn. Four years later, WhatsApp developed a business API and also launched a free app for small businesses called WhatsApp for Business.