WhatsApp Rolls Out 'Communities' Globally, Plus 2 New Group-Focused Features

WhatsApp said these features were intended to improve how groups work on the messaging service.

Here's everything you need to know about WhatsApp Communities.

(Photo Courtesy: WhatsApp)

Amid all the chaos over at Twitter, here's some WhatsApp news:

What's happening? Three new WhatsApp features are being rolled out globally, Mark Zuckerberg announced on Thursday, 3 November.

Communities is in: This feature will allow users to bring together and manage separate groups under one umbrella.

• The word was out on Communities way back in April itself.

• It's meant for organisations that have various teams and sub-groups, like schools or businesses, to manage busy conversations.

• End-to-end encryption will remain intact within Communities, WhatsApp had clarified.

Power play: "Communities will also contain powerful new tools for admins, including announcement messages that are sent to everyone and control over which groups can be included," the company's blog post read.

Larger voice calls: WhatsApp will also introduce one-tap voice calling for up to 32 people with a new design.

Survey says: The ability to create polls on WhatsApp is also being extended to everyone after the feature was beta-tested among a lucky few.

Haven't got them yet? Some patience. While it has been launched worldwide, the features may not immediately reflect on your devices, the company said. Just make sure that your version of WhatsApp for Android and iOS is up to date.

(Photo Courtesy: WhatsApp)

In the last cycle, WhatsApp had announced three other features that were intended to improve how groups work on the messaging service.

• Reactions: Just like Instagram and Twitter, WhatsApp users will also be able to use emoji reactions on messages.

• Admin Delete: WhatsApp group admins will also be empowered to remove errant or problematic messages from everyone’s chats.

• File Sharing: WhatsApp users will be able to share files of up to 2 gigabytes (GB).