Google looking to purchase WhatsApp: rumour

Rumours are also doing the rounds suggesting that Google will rebrand its chat app to Babel chat, and combine its various communications points under that brand.
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Seriously, why? That will just confuse and alienate people. Sometimes I wonder about some of the decisions that Google makes.
 
Whatsapp should remain standalone to Google...
Sometimes the big guns get hungry for more market share :/
 
I want my messages trawled by an advertising company about as much as I want a punch to the face
 
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Many of my messages involve poo (that little turd icon rocks)

Not sure if Google can find ads to use to target me.
 
Oh hell no, they're just gonna fill the app with adds and link it to Google+ or something else equally retarded... If this happens I'm gonna hit up weChat
 
Okay, I dont understand why this is a bad idea.

To me it makes absolutely no difference.
 
scudsucker said:
Many of my messages involve poo (that little turd icon rocks)

Not sure if Google can find ads to use to target me.
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You will start getting adverts for toilet paper anytime you use a google service :)
 
ghoti said:
Okay, I dont understand why this is a bad idea.

To me it makes absolutely no difference.
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It makes a difference if you're part of the usual "OMG ADVERTS" camp that complain whenever Google does anything.
 
Google provides a metric ****-ton of services I use very, very often, without any direct cost to me. If peddling my shoe size to whoever wants to know can continue the financing of these endeavours, they're welcome to it. I'll just block the ads on my side once they become annoying.
 
Mouse said:
It makes a difference if you're part of the usual "OMG ADVERTS" camp that complain whenever Google does anything.
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Dude, I run their OS... android. I use their map service, I use their email. I use their chat service, I use their Calendar service. Again. Really... how is this going to change anything? Perhaps an unpaid ad version will be cool. I have the paid version.

But the whole hysterical "omg Google will be able to target ads".... clearly isnt really a problem with me.

Microsoft buying Skype didnt kill it and neither would Google buying Whatsapp hurt it.

Im willing to bet most of you complaining about this are probably using Google Chrome :P Targeted ads didnt kill their browser huh?
 
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RichardG said:
If Google do buy WhatsAPP they will want to recover from their investment and probably have advertising. Screw it! I pay a subscription fee to remain ad-free
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That will still be the case and for the cheapos they can have it for free with advertising
 
ghoti said:
Dude, I run their OS... android. I use their map service, I use their email. I use their chat service, I use their Calendar service. Again. Really... how is this going to change anything? Perhaps an unpaid ad version will be cool. I have the paid version.

But the whole hysterical "omg Google will be able to target ads".... clearly isnt really a problem with me.

Microsoft buying Skype didnt kill it and neither would Google buying Whatsapp hurt it.

Im willing to bet most of you complaining about this are probably using Google Chrome :P Targeted ads didnt kill their browser huh?
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I know, I agree with you. Ad supported "free" apps and services have served me well over the years, and continue to do so
 
As long as they don't make it another avenue where they desperately try and foist google+ on me, it should be fine I suppose.

And no annoying ads.
 
The only limitation Whatsapp has ever had is the fact that it is only available on the phone.

If it opens up and integrates with Google Talk that will be superb and finally a true multi-platform IM application that everyone actually uses.
 
This is great news for most of us who use Google's multiple services so frequently. Google seriously needs to address their message fragmentation issue (Google Talk, Gmail, Google hangouts, Google messenger), so hopefully this is it.

I have three wishes though.

1. They shouldn't force ads (I'm fine with paying a small fee for an ad free experience).
2. They should provide a great service to other platforms as well. As far as I know, Whatsapp is the best cross platform messnger there has ever been. Don't mess it up.
3. Please please please allow Whatsapp (or whatever it will be called) to work simultaneously on a range of devices using a single account. I can't believe this has not yet been implemented. You can't keep on ignoring the tablets.
 
mikel

Google got MessageMe. Why do they want WhatsApp for?
 
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