WhatsApp was popular, but iirc didn’t have video calls or group phone calls (and perhaps not even 1-1 calls). It is likely true that FB funded WhatsApp’s conti

WhatsApp was popular, but iirc didn’t have video calls or group phone calls (and perhaps not even 1-1 calls). It is likely true that FB funded WhatsApp’s continuing relevance. It is just as likely , though, that WhatsApp would develop these features regardless - at perhaps a slightly slower pace. WhatsApp’s expenses were compatible with $1/user/year they were charging in some markets (and which they would likely be able to charge in most of all). If FB didn’t fund it , someone else - perhaps the users - would have. But it was the growth (evidence for which was collected through Onavo) and implied threat that made FB buy them, not anything else.