JioPhone users get WhatsApp access

Select JioPhone users can access WhatsApp on their handsets from Monday and it will be rolled out across all the handsets in next 10 days.

“For the first time, WhatsApp will be available for JioPhone across India. WhatsApp built a new version of its private messaging app for JioPhone, running the KaiOS operating system,” Reliance Jio Infocomm and WhatsApp said in a joint statement.

This is first of its kind rollout of the mobile messaging app on a non-touch screen mobile phone.

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“We will be providing WhatsApp, the most used chat application in the world, on all JioPhones starting today. Jio wants to thank the Facebook and WhatsApp team for making this happen,” Akash Ambani, Director, Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited, said.

People can download WhatsApp on both the JioPhone and the JioPhone 2 by visiting the AppStore and clicking on ‘download’ from September 10 and all the JioPhone mobile handsets will be updated with Whatsapp in a phased manner by September 20, the statement said.

JioPhone users can record and send voice messages on WhatsApp.

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“Millions of people across India can now use WhatsApp private messaging on the best-in-class JioPhone across India. By designing this new app for KaiOS, we hope to expand the ability for people to communicate with anyone in India and around the world,” Chris Daniels, Vice President, WhatsApp said.