Changes will gradually emerge over the next five years
Paywalled features always have the potential to be annoying, but they’re still valuable ways for developers to innovate while continuing to be able to offer free access. While historically a lot of free services have been ad-funded, some companies are increasingly looking at paywalls to compensate for shifting revenue streams — not unlike what Meta’s advertisement-based monetization model is dealing with in the face of changes like Apple’s App Tracking Transparency measures. A report now suggests that Meta is working on new paid features for its various social media platforms, and has created a New Monetization Experiences group to drive this effort.
Based on information in a memo sent out to Meta employees last week, The Verge reports that the company’s new group will focus on building paid features for three social media platforms, each with billions of potentially monetizable users — Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram. This could help the firm develop a steady revenue stream fueled directly by users instead of the ads they watch, making it a sustainable option if Google follows in Apple’s footsteps.
Meta’s New Monetization Experiences group will be led by the company’s former head of research, Pratiti Raychoudhury, while Meta’s VP of monetization, John Hegeman, will oversee it. In an interview, Hegeman didn’t divulge any specific features, but said the company sees an opportunity to build new kinds of products and experiences which people would willingly pay for.
He didn’t say the paywalled features would necessarily be a runaway success, but believes the focus remains squarely on creating “meaningful revenue lines.” Last, he said that these features could make a significant difference in Meta’s operations in the next five years. However, there’s no information on the future of Meta’s advertising business and if we can expect fewer ads on Instagram and Facebook (don’t hold your breath).
Meta, like any other contemporary social media company, is no stranger to paywalled features. Twitter has Super Follows, Telegram recently turned freemium, and Snapchat has a paid tier, too. We’re just surprised it took Meta so long to form a group dedicated to monetization.
