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By that logic WhatsApp isn't free. I have to spend hundreds of dollars upfront to buy a phone, and worse, hundreds of dollars each year to maintain a phone line
by jdjdjjsjs 7y ago
By that logic WhatsApp isn't free. I have to spend hundreds of dollars upfront to buy a phone, and worse, hundreds of dollars each year to maintain a phone line to use WhatsApp.
WhatsApp doesn't provide an API so I could use it on my existing laptop over WiFi for free (the WhatsApp web requires it to be setup on a phone first).
- actsof 7y ago>I have to spend hundreds of dollars upfront to buy a phone But the phone doesn't have to be bought from Facebook, whereas with iMessage you have to pay Apple for a phone. >maintain a phone line to use WhatsApp. I wonder what the reason for this is. Maybe to reduce spam? Data collection?
- MiroF 7y agoBut I get to choose who to pay - and most people already have a phone. maintaining a phone line doesn't cost hundreds of dollars a year
- culturestate 7y ago> ...WhatsApp isn't free. I have to spend hundreds of dollars upfront to buy a phone... WhatsApp works reliably on a staggeringly broad list of devices. You can get a supported phone for, like, $20 and stick a $5-per-month prepaid SIM in it (many of these plans in low-income countries specifically come with WhatsApp allowances) and be connected.
- ulfw 7y agoYea that’s not free
- culturestate 7y agoWhatsApp is as effectively free as it can be within the segment of the population that needs or wants it. This is like arguing that free Wi-Fi isn't "free" because some people only use ethernet. If you don't already own a compatible device, you aren't their customer anyway.
- Fnoord 7y agoThen, following your logic, no software is free as in beer because you always need a computer to run it, and computer hardware isn't free...