Telegram founder Pavel Durov has said that the messaging service will debut a paid Telegram Premium subscription later this month, providing users with “extra features, speed, and resources.”
Durov teases some of the subscription’s features, such as early access to new features, the ability to upload larger files, and Premium-only stickers and reactions.
However, Durov emphasizes that Telegram’s existing features will remain free, and that the paid additions will have no effect on the app’s experience for free users. Non-subscribers will still be able to view and interact with Premium stickers and replies, as well as larger files uploaded by Premium users.
A Premium membership will help the service offset some of the costs associated with raising the limits on file sizes, conversations, and media, which Durov claims would be unmanageable if made available to all users. A paid subscription has been in the works for some time, with Durov initially discussing it around 2020.
According to data from the beta version of the app, it will cost $4.99 a month and will include speedier downloads, voice-to-text messages, tools to customize your chats, and more.
As of April 2022, cloud-based mobile messaging app Telegram reported 500 million monthly active users worldwide.