- Open WhatsApp and go to Settings > Account > Third Party Conversations
- Turn on “Third Party Chat Support”
- Review potential spam/scam alerts and data handling differences
- Go to the “Selected Apps” option.
You then choose which specific third-party messaging applications you want to interconnect with. After that, a new “Third Party Chats” section will appear at the top of your WhatsApp chat list. To use the integration, open a new chat window as usual. If you’re chatting with a contact using a third-party app you’ve enabled, their conversation will appear in the “Third-party conversations” section.
With the feature turned on, please note that WhatsApp will display prominent warnings about third-party chats that are more vulnerable to fraud, spam, and different data handling practices. At least, compared to the known encrypted environment of WhatsApp.
While it may sound a bit fishy (from a business perspective), at least it remains compliant with an app that upholds its security standards, even if reluctantly so due to government-required openness.
Known limitations
As mentioned earlier, a new “Third Party Chats” section will appear at the top of their WhatsApp chat list, separating these external chats from native WhatsApp chats. Related leaked information also shows that other apps will be able to search for WhatsApp users by their phone numbers, although usernames and profile pictures won’t be shared.
The focus of the update also appears to be only on basic text messaging and media sharing capabilities. More advanced WhatsApp features such as disappearing messages, stickers, emoji reactions and group chat functions are expected to be limited or unavailable for chat interoperability at launch.
Regulatory directive
The European Commission’s revolutionary Law on Digital Markets is the driving force behind WhatsApp, which “changed its mind” about third-party integration. After viewing Meta’s messaging service as a gatekeeper platform with significant market power, regulators have mandated greater openness and interoperability with smaller competitors. Thus, app compliance through multi-app integration.
This follows a similar trajectory for Apple, which was forced to allow third-party app stores and loosened browser restrictions on iOS web browsing apps in Europe.
While WhatsApp has stated that this third-party support will be exclusive to the European region for now, other markets with strong technology regulation may follow suit. The implications could reshape the currently fragmented landscape for applications focused on communication and interaction, which their companies have long kept to themselves.
Purists may lament the trade-offs, but regulators see unrestricted interoperability as key to fair competition and consumer choice. Which, I believe, we can all agree with.