WhatsApp with social media?

Editorial Comment
WHEN Mark Zuckerburg, chief executive officer of Facebook, bought WhatsApp for $19 billion I could not understand why he would pay so much for an asset that does not generate a revenue stream.

WHEN Mark Zuckerburg, chief executive officer of Facebook, bought WhatsApp for $19 billion I could not understand why he would pay so much for an asset that does not generate a revenue stream.

My reasoning was based on the fact that the application is downloaded free of charge and utilised at zero cost (if you negate the cost to your service provider for data bundles).

However, I later learnt there is actually a subscription fee of $0,99 for using WhatsApp following a year of free subscription. I am not sure if this applies to me as I have been using the service for years!

According to Mark’s estimation there are currently one billion users of WhatsApp which if we assumed everyone subscribed would translate to $1 billion revenue annually assuming the subscriber base did not grow.

However, clearly the ambitions of Zuckerburg lie in growing the user base hence the value lies in the potential that this asset is likely to generate.

Honestly speaking if there’s any social application that has revolutionarised the way we communicate (sometimes to our own detriment) it has to be WhatsApp. It has enabled us to communicate with friends and family all over the world with ease and minimal cost. For some, WhatsApp has completely replaced the need to make voice calls; a concept I often struggle with.

Sometimes a one-minute call could clearly eliminate the diatribe of 20 text messages going back and forth like a Wimbeldon tennis match.

Some relationships are now initiated through WhatsApp and the entire courtship takes place on this social media right up the break up.

A lot of relationship angst on WhatsApp has been created by two words: “Last Seen”. I think Zuckerberg should go a step further in adding a GPS location to that “Last Seen.”

Anyone will know how disconcerting that “last seen at 3:45am” on your partner’s phone can be especially. It stirs you to ask questions like where and with whom?

Then of course there’s nothing more irritating than when your messages that have been read, go unanswered yet you are well aware that the messages were delivered and the other person is online.

This is probably one of the most insulting things about WhatsApp.

There is never a good excuse not to reply a message! That leads people to have pervasive arguments on WhatsApp. Instead of a verbal exchange we opt to type fast and furiously an invective of expletives.

However, if there’s anything that this Oscar Pistorius trial has taught us is that our WhatsApp history can come back to haunt us.

So be careful of that mindless flirtation that takes root on WhatsApp culminating into more vulgar exchanges of nudes and genitals.

You see that’s the other thing about WhatsApp; it has facilitated with ease the ability to swop audios, images and music in seconds.

However, not everything is meant to be shared, so be discerning about what you exchange. WhatsApp can also be invasive.

Being “online” can invite meaningless exchanges into your life. If you have absolutely nothing to say then don’t initiate a conversation.

Then there are always those anonymous people who get your number and start chatting.

Asking who they are can also be misconstrued as a rebuff,so sometimes I end up chatting with nameless and faceless people all the in name of courtesy.

What I find even more annoying is the shorthand some people prefer to use. You spend half your time trying to decipher the message.

Then there are those WhatsApp aficionados who will chat with you till your fingers are numb from typing. Surely there is life to be lived outside of WhatsApp? Then come the groupies.

Group chats can have your phone beeping with inconsequential discussions that sometimes don’t even relate to you.

Luckily some smartphones are equipped with the mute function which can go up to eight hours or more to eliminate such annoyances.

Or when it gets too overbearing just delete and exit the group chat.

However, some can often find this offensive. But the ultimate annoyance is when you are out socialising with friends and everyone turns their attention to their phones.

Hello! Can we talk to each other and stop texting? Then there are those who want to WhatsApp after hours. Thank G-d I sleep with my phone on silent. I would hate to be woken up by a text message at 2am in the morning with: “Hi. Wat u up 2 (sic)?”

Yes, let’s be considerate to other users. Some things can wait till the morning. Oh, and before I sign out just a reminder that WhatsApp has not replaced e-mail. Don’t forward me long-winded jokes or worse those threatening chain letters.

This will certainly get you blocked! Mind your manner, that is WhatsApp!

 Sue Nyathi is the author of the novel The Polygamist. You can follow her on Twitter @SueNyathi