Meta is getting ready to launch third-party chat integration on WhatsApp in Europe, the company announced on Friday. The tech giant notes that the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) requires it to give users in Europe the option to chat with people using third-party messaging services that have chosen to make their apps interoperable.
“Following successful small-scale tests over the past months, the option for WhatsApp users to chat with users of messaging apps BirdyChat and Haiket directly via third-party chats will soon be rolling out across Europe,” Meta wrote in a blog post. “This marks a significant milestone in Meta’s compliance with the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) interoperability requirements.”
Users in Europe who have opted in to the third-party integration will be able to share messages, images, voice messages, videos, and files. The option to create groups with third-party users will launch once Meta’s partners are ready to support it, the company says.