This archive report was first published on 6 August 2019.
On October 22, 2014, WhatsApp made a significant move to expand its reach by launching a web version of its mobile instant messaging service, starting with Chrome web browsers.
The web client, available for Android, Windows Phone, Nokia, and BlackBerry users, is an extension of WhatsApp on the phone, fetching messages from the phone to the computer.
However, due to limitations with the Apple platform, iOS users will not have access to this service at the time of launch.
For trials, users were asked to scan a QR code inside their WhatsApp on mobile, which then paired the browser with the phone, reflecting WhatsApp from the phone directly to the desktop.
Just a few days prior, WhatsApp announced it had hit 700 million active users, up from 100 million in August, with over 30 billion messages sent every day.
By launching on the web, WhatsApp aimed to attract more active users, particularly those who wanted to share and watch videos and pictures on larger screens, and listen to music as well.
This move also helped the Facebook-owned firm to compete with other messaging services like Viber, Line, Skype, and Hangouts, which already had desktop versions.
