Telegram has introduced a new suite of features specifically designed for businesses, alongside an innovative ad-revenue sharing model. This suite of features, known as Telegram Business, was officially launched over the weekend, signaling the platform’s intention to carve out a significant niche in the business communication segment.
Innovating Business Communication
Designed to enhance the utility for business users, Telegram Business includes customizable start pages, preset business hours and replies, greeting and away messages, chatbots, chat tags, and more, aiming to streamline communication and improve customer interaction.
One of the standout components of this rollout is the ad-revenue sharing model, which allows public channels on Telegram with a minimum of 1,000 subscribers to retain 50% of the earnings from advertisements displayed within their channels.
This model was unveiled shortly after Telegram’s founder, Pavel Durov, shared with the Financial Times his anticipation of the platform achieving profitability by 2025, highlighting Telegram Business as a crucial element in this profitability strategy and the path to a potential Initial Public Offering (IPO).
Premium Subscription: The Gateway to Business Features
Access to Telegram Business requires a subscription to Telegram Premium, outlined in the table below for clarity:
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Monthly Subscription | $4.99 per month for both iOS and Android users. |
| Long-Term Plans | Available in three-month, six-month, or one-year plans, offering cost-effective options for long-term users. |
| Subscription Convenience | Subscribe through @PremiumBot on Android, Desktop, and Mac for a discount by avoiding app store commission fees. |
| Subscriber Growth | Grew from over a million subscribers in December 2022 to 5 million by January 2024, indicating rapid growth. |
As of December 2022, Telegram Premium boasted over a million subscribers, a number that dramatically increased to 5 million by January 2024, indicating a rapid acceleration in subscriber growth.
This surge in Premium subscriptions can be attributed to the introduction of Telegram Business, which provides business customers with essential tools and features without the necessity of coding knowledge.
What New Tools Does Telegram Business Bring?
Key functionalities of Telegram Business, mirroring some available on WhatsApp, include the ability for businesses to showcase their hours of operation and location on a map, welcome customers with a custom start page, and employ “quick replies” for efficient communication.
Additional features facilitate out-of-hours communication through away messages and chat categorization using colored labels, enhancing organizational efficiency.
Telegram also allows businesses to create direct chat links that facilitate actions such as order tracking or table reservations, and the integration of Telegram bots or AI assistants to manage messages.
The company has announced plans to further expand Telegram Business features, including the potential launch of AI-powered chatbots for business users, as Durov hinted in his interview with the Financial Times.
Challenging the Status Quo in Business Communications
This development presents a challenge to Meta’s dominance in the business communication sector, where Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp currently lead. Even Apple’s niche in this market, through Apple Messages for Businesses, serves notable companies across various industries.
Telegram Business, accessible without additional costs beyond the Premium subscription, represents Telegram’s strategy to diversify revenue streams through both Premium subscriptions and Telegram Ads. The recent introduction of a revenue-sharing program based on toncoin (a token on the TON blockchain) underscores the company’s innovative approaches to platform monetization.
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