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Whatsapp is an outlier in many ways and comparing them with any company will make that company seem bloated. As for the comparison, Whatsapp has no monetization model, no marketing and a simpler product.

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WhatsApp charges a subscription fee after the first year of $1/year.

When you have several hundred million users, that adds up. An effective monetization model, if unusual in SV.

But it actually doesn't charge that subscription fee. At least not to the overwhelming majority of its users.

I really do not understand what the logic is here. They already have your loyalty presumably, and it's not a high sticker price.

They used to send me messages about that yearly few but they always ended up extending my membership for free every few months. Then they stopped asking. WhatsApp is de facto free.

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