Telegram has stated that it is able to reach a 700 million monthly active users milestone from personal recommendations and without having to pay to advertise the app.
The cloud-based mobile and desktop app in its blog post said it will now launch Telegram Premium, a subscription that lets users support Telegram’s continued development as well as give access to exclusive additional features.
It said the development would see the company offer some of the heavy features users have asked for over the years, whilst also preserving free access to all existing features.
What Telegram is saying
The company said it believes the social media development should be driven primarily by its users, not advertisers. “This way our users will always remain our main priority,” It stated.
- It also pointed out that the Premium subscriptions help Telegram pay not only for the additional expenses of premium features but also support the free version of Telegram for everyone.
- “The contributions of premium subscribers will help improve and expand the app for decades to come, while Telegram will remain free, independent and uphold its users-first values, redefining how a tech company should operate,” it stated.
- With the inclusion of additional features that allow faster download, 4GB upload, voice to text and a host of others, Telegram said the update is being rolled out gradually, noting that those who are yet to get an update will get it soon.
- It stated, “While we are going to release more exciting features for Premium subscribers, we will keep implementing free features available for everyone, and do it faster than any other massively popular app.”
- “By subscribing to Telegram Premium, users unlock doubled limits, 4 GB file uploads, faster downloads, exclusive stickers and reactions, improved chat management – and a whole lot more.
- “At the same time, all existing features that users have come to expect and rely on for nearly a decade remain free. Moreover, non-premium users will be able to enjoy some of Premium’s benefits: for example, download the extra-large document and view stickers sent by premium users, as well as tap to increase counters on premium reaction that were already added to a message.”