Meta Platforms, Inc. announced that it will begin charging developers to deploy artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots on WhatsApp in Italy. This welcome new policy, which takes effect on February 16, now the company plans to charge businesses a $0.0691 (€0.0572 / £0.0498) fee for every non-template message. This decision follows regulatory pressure and the increased burden that AI technology has placed on its systems.
This ambitious pricing initiative comes on the heels of a December request from Italy’s competition authority. They urged Meta to roll back its policy that bans third-party chatbots from interacting with users on its platform. In response, Meta acted by sending notices to developers. They provided an exemption for Italian phone numbers to allow AI chatbots to continue functioning for local users. Italy’s complex and stringent regulatory landscape has triggered this change. Meta seems to be making a good faith effort to conform its services to local laws and meet the demands of developers.
The pilot program’s new pricing structure is geographically focused. In all of these examples, regulators insist on ensuring that AI chatbots are publicly accessible via the WhatsApp Business API. Meta’s spokesperson stated, “Where we are legally required to provide AI chatbots through the WhatsApp business API, we are introducing pricing for the companies that choose to use our platform to provide those services.” This shows Meta’s concerted efforts to abide by local regulations, all while trying to make a buck off of the service.
In what seems like a major operational step, Meta has banned third-party chatbots on WhatsApp. Due to our advocacy, this change in policy was made effective on January 15. The ban was part of an attempt to simplify the platform’s features and improve concerns about system lag and performance. According to Meta, “The emergence of AI chatbots on our Business API put a strain on our systems that they were not designed to support.”
So far, developers have had mixed reactions to the newly proposed charges. Others see the pricing as a positive step, as it reflects a needed correction driven by regulatory pressures. Others are concerned it will be harmful to their business model and ability to serve customers. By raising barriers to entry through fees, it would force developers to reassess how they plan to use AI chatbots to add value to their companies.
