Telegram is one of the safer messaging apps currently in the market, along with similar apps like Signal and Viber. Although the app is free to use, which makes it even better, the app's founder, Pavel Durov, isn't earning much from it.
That fact could change sometime in the future.
According to a recent report from The Verge, Telegram is currently testing a feature that lets paying users to use new content they can unlock exclusively, per Telegram's announcement.
The app previously released "sponsored messages" or in-app advertisements to generate income, per XDA Developers.
Telegram Premium Details
According to Telegram's announcement, the app will soon introduce a feature called "Telegram Premium" in version 8.7.2. This new feature, which comes at a price, lets paying users use a new set of stickers and reaction emoji only they can unlock.
Although the feature isn't up for the general public, users with access to the app's TestFlight builds and its Test Server can get a glimpse of it. Users are able to send each other exploding-heart and flying-ghost reactions, an unbearably sad yellow duck, among other things.
Telegram Premium is somewhat similar to Discord's Nitro subscription, wherein getting one will let you use more emoji, have better bandwidth for video and audio, improved badges and avatars, increased file limit, and more.
Seeing the feature in action is also limited to paying users only, meaning that a regular users wouldn't be able to see the new emojis unless they are also paying for Telegram Premium. Regular customers who do get Telegram exclusive emoji and reactions would get a prompt inviting them to sign up to see the blocked content.
Telegram has yet to announce definite pricing of the new feature, but it is currently available for beta testers on iOS devices for the time being.
According to 9to5Google, a special avatar creator will be coming in the macOS version of Telegram, but it isn't clear if it will be a part of Telegram Premium, per u/Tanto_Faz_123 in r/Telegram.
Is Telegram Premium Worth Your Money?
Durov mentioned in 2020 that Telegram will be used to generate revenue come 2021, so it won't be forced to sell out like WhatsApp or disappear like the apps before them, per a separate Telegram announcement.
It first started with "sponsored messages" or advertisements, wherein 160-character advertisements are displayed in large, public one-to-many channels with 1000+ subscribers. These sponsored messages are said to be based on the topic of the public channels they were in exclusively.
This measure means that no user data is collected, mined, or analyzed to display these ads.
However, with its current offering set, Telegram Premium's features seem inadequate for anyone to pay. Although the avatar creation feature is neat, and the feeling of exclusivity from it can be appealing to some, most people would think that these features are better off given to the public for free than pay for any amount.
Facebook already has a Meta avatar creation tool that comes with the platform for free. The stickers, while novel, won't do any good to further propagate the feature to other people as those who pay for it can get the full exprience.
If Telegram really wants something comparable to Discord Premium, they should at least have offerings that regular users can still see. As Telegram Premium is still in its beta phase, we may see some high-profile improvements in the future.
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