Today's update adds Video Ca... (ah, no, not yet) Profile Videos, improved People Nearby features, 2 GB file uploads and much more.
Preview media from mini-thumbnails in your chat list and notifications, view detailed statistics for large groups, and send over 20 new animated emoji like ⚽️, 🙊 and 😱.
Android users can now crop and rotate videos, and the music player was redesigned with a new layout and icons.
Preview media from mini-thumbnails in your chat list and notifications, view detailed statistics for large groups, and send over 20 new animated emoji like ⚽️, 🙊 and 😱.
Android users can now crop and rotate videos, and the music player was redesigned with a new layout and icons.
Forwarded from Du Rove's Channel
I can understand why the US gov threatens to ban TikTok unless its US assets are sold to US investors. After all, China bans pretty much every non-Chinese social media app on its territory. Why should the rest of the world, including the US, let a Chinese app have a free ride in their markets? If you want to access the markets of other countries, you should also open your market to them – that would be fair.
However, the US move against TikTok is setting a dangerous precedent that may eventually kill the internet as a truly global network (or what is left of it). Before the US-TikTok saga, only autocratic countries like Iran, China or Russia were known for bullying tech companies into selling parts of their businesses to investors with close ties to their governments. It’s not surprising, for example, that Uber had to sell both their Russian and Chinese branches to local players.
I am proud that, unlike Uber, we at Telegram have always declined offers to sell our operations in specific countries. A few years ago we received letters from two funds with ties to countries that later attempted to block Telegram. Both letters expressed the same idea: “Telegram is going to get blocked in our country soon, so your only option is to sell us the local part of your business”. My response to those offers has been along the lines of my 2011 middle finger photo: we are not in the business of betraying our users. We are not selling Telegram – neither in part, nor in full. This will always be our position.
The problem with the US-TikTok case is that it legitimises an extortion tactic previously employed only by authoritarian regimes. For decades, the US has been perceived as the defender of free trade and free speech. But now that China has started to replace them as the main beneficiary of global trade, the US (or at least the Trump administration) seems to have become less enthusiastic about those values. This is regrettable, because billions of people on this planet still like the idea of an open and interconnected world.
Last week, Turkey introduced a bunch of laws limiting social media companies. A few years ago, the US would have had the moral right to criticise such efforts, citing freedom of speech and free trade as ideological foundations for their concerns. Today it’s less clear whether the US still has that right. Authoritarian leaders all over the world are already using the TikTok case as justification in their attempts to carve out a piece of the global internet for themselves. Soon, every big country is likely to use “national security” as a pretext to fracture international tech companies. And ironically, it’s the US companies like Facebook or Google that are likely to lose the most from the fallout.
However, the US move against TikTok is setting a dangerous precedent that may eventually kill the internet as a truly global network (or what is left of it). Before the US-TikTok saga, only autocratic countries like Iran, China or Russia were known for bullying tech companies into selling parts of their businesses to investors with close ties to their governments. It’s not surprising, for example, that Uber had to sell both their Russian and Chinese branches to local players.
I am proud that, unlike Uber, we at Telegram have always declined offers to sell our operations in specific countries. A few years ago we received letters from two funds with ties to countries that later attempted to block Telegram. Both letters expressed the same idea: “Telegram is going to get blocked in our country soon, so your only option is to sell us the local part of your business”. My response to those offers has been along the lines of my 2011 middle finger photo: we are not in the business of betraying our users. We are not selling Telegram – neither in part, nor in full. This will always be our position.
The problem with the US-TikTok case is that it legitimises an extortion tactic previously employed only by authoritarian regimes. For decades, the US has been perceived as the defender of free trade and free speech. But now that China has started to replace them as the main beneficiary of global trade, the US (or at least the Trump administration) seems to have become less enthusiastic about those values. This is regrettable, because billions of people on this planet still like the idea of an open and interconnected world.
Last week, Turkey introduced a bunch of laws limiting social media companies. A few years ago, the US would have had the moral right to criticise such efforts, citing freedom of speech and free trade as ideological foundations for their concerns. Today it’s less clear whether the US still has that right. Authoritarian leaders all over the world are already using the TikTok case as justification in their attempts to carve out a piece of the global internet for themselves. Soon, every big country is likely to use “national security” as a pretext to fracture international tech companies. And ironically, it’s the US companies like Facebook or Google that are likely to lose the most from the fallout.
It's Telegram's birthday today ✌️
The iPhone app hit the store exactly seven years ago: August 14, 2013.
The alpha version of Telegram for Android officially launched on October 20, 2013.
ℹ️ @geeksChannel
The iPhone app hit the store exactly seven years ago: August 14, 2013.
The alpha version of Telegram for Android officially launched on October 20, 2013.
ℹ️ @geeksChannel
Telegram Geeks
"Videocalls update is supposed to go live today". ℹ️ @geeksChannel
This media is not supported in your browser
VIEW IN TELEGRAM
Forwarded from Du Rove's Channel
Some users asked whether comments will become the default mode for channels. While we think it’s fun to comment on channels, most channels don’t need commenting, so it will remain optional and disabled by default.
That said, native comments are a great upgrade for channels that had been previously relying on the web comments bot. Native comments are faster, more feature-rich for posting and moderating, and have built-in reply notifications.
Some users rightly pointed out that Telegram native comments look like chats rather than the two-level comments you can find on social networks. That’s exactly the point - Telegram is not a social network, but a messaging app.
While many people successfully use Telegram to distribute information among millions of users (posts broadcasted by channels generate over 350 billion views monthly), Telegram will remain an easy-to-use minimalist tool, with chats at the center of the user experience.
That said, native comments are a great upgrade for channels that had been previously relying on the web comments bot. Native comments are faster, more feature-rich for posting and moderating, and have built-in reply notifications.
Some users rightly pointed out that Telegram native comments look like chats rather than the two-level comments you can find on social networks. That’s exactly the point - Telegram is not a social network, but a messaging app.
While many people successfully use Telegram to distribute information among millions of users (posts broadcasted by channels generate over 350 billion views monthly), Telegram will remain an easy-to-use minimalist tool, with chats at the center of the user experience.
Forwarded from Du Rove's Channel
Apple is requesting that we shut down 3 channels used by the people of Belarus to expose the identities of their oppressors.
@karatelibelarusi
@chatpartizan
@belarusassholes
Their concern is that publishing the personal information of law enforcers and propagandists may incite violence.
I think this situation is not black and white and would rather leave the channels be, but typically Apple doesn’t offer much choice for apps like Telegram in such situations. Unfortunately, I assume these channels will end up getting blocked on iOS, but remain available on other platforms.
P. S. Everyone is welcome to express their views and comment on this post provided they stay on-topic and use English. Thanks!
@karatelibelarusi
@chatpartizan
@belarusassholes
Their concern is that publishing the personal information of law enforcers and propagandists may incite violence.
I think this situation is not black and white and would rather leave the channels be, but typically Apple doesn’t offer much choice for apps like Telegram in such situations. Unfortunately, I assume these channels will end up getting blocked on iOS, but remain available on other platforms.
P. S. Everyone is welcome to express their views and comment on this post provided they stay on-topic and use English. Thanks!
Telegram
Du Rove's Channel
7 Reasons Every iPhone User Should Be Worried About the App Store’s 30% Tax
In the last few months, many prominent app developers voiced their disapproval of the App Store policies Apple imposes on all apps. Why should that concern you if you own an iPhone?…
In the last few months, many prominent app developers voiced their disapproval of the App Store policies Apple imposes on all apps. Why should that concern you if you own an iPhone?…
Forwarded from BotNews
Introducing Bot API 5.0
•Support for the football and slot machine animated emoji.
• Run your own Bot API server.
• Transfer Bot ownership to another account.
• New options for Webhooks.
• New method copyMessage to send a copy of any mesage.
• Support for Live Locations, including the latest changes.
• Support for Multiple Pinned Messages
• Support for File Albums
• Support for Anonymous Admins.
• Support for ⚽️ and 🎰 animated emoji.
• And much more, read the full changelog here:
https://telegram.dog/s/forexzig/bots/api-changelog#November-4-2020
•
• Run your own Bot API server.
• Transfer Bot ownership to another account.
• New options for Webhooks.
• New method copyMessage to send a copy of any mesage.
• Support for Live Locations, including the latest changes.
• Support for Multiple Pinned Messages
• Support for File Albums
• Support for Anonymous Admins.
• Support for ⚽️ and 🎰 animated emoji.
• And much more, read the full changelog here:
https://telegram.dog/s/forexzig/bots/api-changelog#November-4-2020
telegram.dog/s/forexzig
Bot API changelog
The Bot API is an HTTP-based interface created for developers keen on building bots for Telegram. To learn how to create…
Forwarded from Telegram News
Today's update adds Voice Chats, creating a seamless integration of text and talk in groups. Members can join and leave these open conference calls at any time for a bit of spontaneous conversation alongside their usual text messages and media.
As the calendar turns over to 2021, we'll be busy taking in your feedback and improving Voice Chats with features like video and screen sharing at the top of our list.
To read about all the features in this update, like SD Card Storage for Android and more, check out the full post on our blog:
https://publielectoral.lat/s/fxnotez/voice-chats
As the calendar turns over to 2021, we'll be busy taking in your feedback and improving Voice Chats with features like video and screen sharing at the top of our list.
To read about all the features in this update, like SD Card Storage for Android and more, check out the full post on our blog:
https://publielectoral.lat/s/fxnotez/voice-chats
Telegram
Voice Chats Done Right
Today, Telegram groups get an entire new dimension with Voice Chats – persistent conference calls that members can join and leave as they please. Our 12th update in 2020 brings them to you just in time for remote Christmas carols.
Forwarded from Telegram News
The end of the year is normally a time to look back at the past 12 months. Instead, our founder Pavel Durov has just announced his strategy for making Telegram sustainable, to continue providing you with great features for decades to come.
Telegram
Du Rove's Channel
As Telegram approaches 500 million active users, many of you are asking the question – who is going to pay to support this growth? After all, more users mean more expenses for traffic and servers. A project of our size needs at least a few hundred million…
Forwarded from Du Rove's Channel
I hear Facebook has an entire department devoted to figuring out why Telegram is so popular. Imagine dozens of employees working on just that full-time.
I am happy to save Facebook tens of millions of dollars and give away our secret for free: respect your users.
Millions of people are outraged by the latest change in WhatsApp Terms, which now say users must feed all their private data to Facebook’s ad engine. It’s no surprise that the flight of users from WhatsApp to Telegram, already ongoing for a few years, has accelerated.
At about 500 million users and growing, Telegram has become a major problem for the Facebook corporation. Unable to compete with Telegram in quality and privacy, Facebook’s WhatsApp seems to have switched to covert marketing: Wikipedia editors have recently exposed multiple paid bots adding biased information into the WhatsApp Wikipedia article [1].
We have also detected bots which spread inaccurate information about Telegram on social media. Here are the 3 myths they are pushing:
Myth 1. “Telegram’s code is not open-source”. In reality, all Telegram client apps have been open source since 2013 [2]. Our encryption and API are fully documented and have been reviewed by security experts thousands of times. Moreover, Telegram is the only messaging app in the world that has verifiable builds both for iOS and Android [3]. As for WhatsApp, they intentionally obfuscate their code, making it impossible to verify their encryption and privacy.
Myth 2. “Telegram is Russian”. In fact, Telegram has no servers or offices in Russia and was blocked there from 2018 to 2020 [4]. Telegram is still blocked in some authoritarian countries such as Iran, while WhatsApp and other “supposedly secure” apps have never had any issue in these places.
Myth 3. “Telegram is not encrypted”. Every chat on Telegram has been encrypted since launch. We have Secret Chats that are end-to-end and Cloud Chats that also offer real-time secure and distributed cloud storage [5]. WhatsApp, on the other hand, had zero encryption for a few years, and then adopted an encryption protocol funded by the US Government [6]. Even if we assume that the WhatsApp encryption is solid, it’s invalidated via multiple backdoors and reliance on backups [7].
In 2019 alone, Facebook spent almost 10 billion dollars on marketing [8] (I guess this includes paid bots on Wikipedia and other sites).
Unlike Facebook, Telegram doesn't spend any money, let alone billions of dollars, on marketing. We believe that people are smart enough to choose what is best for them. And, judging by the half a billion people using Telegram, this belief is justified.
[1] – WhatsApp Gives Users Ultimatum – Share Data with Facebook or Lose Access
[2] – In December 2020, the Wikipedia article about WhatsApp had the label “This article may have been created or edited in return for undisclosed payments, a violation of Wikipedia's terms of use”. Related investigation is discussed here.
[3] – Telegram Source Code
[4] – Reproducible Builds for Telegram Apps
[4] – On Digital Resistance in Russia
[5] – On Telegram Encryption
[6] – U.S. Government Funded The WhatsApp Encryption
[7] – Why WhatsApp Will Never Be Secure
[8] – Facebook Marketing Spending from 2010 to 2019
I am happy to save Facebook tens of millions of dollars and give away our secret for free: respect your users.
Millions of people are outraged by the latest change in WhatsApp Terms, which now say users must feed all their private data to Facebook’s ad engine. It’s no surprise that the flight of users from WhatsApp to Telegram, already ongoing for a few years, has accelerated.
At about 500 million users and growing, Telegram has become a major problem for the Facebook corporation. Unable to compete with Telegram in quality and privacy, Facebook’s WhatsApp seems to have switched to covert marketing: Wikipedia editors have recently exposed multiple paid bots adding biased information into the WhatsApp Wikipedia article [1].
We have also detected bots which spread inaccurate information about Telegram on social media. Here are the 3 myths they are pushing:
Myth 1. “Telegram’s code is not open-source”. In reality, all Telegram client apps have been open source since 2013 [2]. Our encryption and API are fully documented and have been reviewed by security experts thousands of times. Moreover, Telegram is the only messaging app in the world that has verifiable builds both for iOS and Android [3]. As for WhatsApp, they intentionally obfuscate their code, making it impossible to verify their encryption and privacy.
Myth 2. “Telegram is Russian”. In fact, Telegram has no servers or offices in Russia and was blocked there from 2018 to 2020 [4]. Telegram is still blocked in some authoritarian countries such as Iran, while WhatsApp and other “supposedly secure” apps have never had any issue in these places.
Myth 3. “Telegram is not encrypted”. Every chat on Telegram has been encrypted since launch. We have Secret Chats that are end-to-end and Cloud Chats that also offer real-time secure and distributed cloud storage [5]. WhatsApp, on the other hand, had zero encryption for a few years, and then adopted an encryption protocol funded by the US Government [6]. Even if we assume that the WhatsApp encryption is solid, it’s invalidated via multiple backdoors and reliance on backups [7].
In 2019 alone, Facebook spent almost 10 billion dollars on marketing [8] (I guess this includes paid bots on Wikipedia and other sites).
Unlike Facebook, Telegram doesn't spend any money, let alone billions of dollars, on marketing. We believe that people are smart enough to choose what is best for them. And, judging by the half a billion people using Telegram, this belief is justified.
[1] – WhatsApp Gives Users Ultimatum – Share Data with Facebook or Lose Access
[2] – In December 2020, the Wikipedia article about WhatsApp had the label “This article may have been created or edited in return for undisclosed payments, a violation of Wikipedia's terms of use”. Related investigation is discussed here.
[3] – Telegram Source Code
[4] – Reproducible Builds for Telegram Apps
[4] – On Digital Resistance in Russia
[5] – On Telegram Encryption
[6] – U.S. Government Funded The WhatsApp Encryption
[7] – Why WhatsApp Will Never Be Secure
[8] – Facebook Marketing Spending from 2010 to 2019
Forwarded from Du Rove's Channel
I’ve been taking part in the discussion in the comments and answering questions. Here are some of the responses:
On Apple-Google censorship https://teleg.eu/durovschat/518801
On making server-side code open https://teleg.eu/durovschat/515221
On a privacy-conscious ad platform https://teleg.eu/durovschat/527441
On US-based encrypted apps https://teleg.eu/durovschat/519187
On encryption vs. usability when using Secret Chats vs Cloud Chats https://teleg.eu/durovschat/527081
On maximising security of communication https://teleg.eu/durovschat/527134
On Apple-Google censorship https://teleg.eu/durovschat/518801
On making server-side code open https://teleg.eu/durovschat/515221
On a privacy-conscious ad platform https://teleg.eu/durovschat/527441
On US-based encrypted apps https://teleg.eu/durovschat/519187
On encryption vs. usability when using Secret Chats vs Cloud Chats https://teleg.eu/durovschat/527081
On maximising security of communication https://teleg.eu/durovschat/527134
Forwarded from Du Rove's Channel
Some users wanted a way to move their chat history from WhatsApp over to Telegram. Two weeks ago I realized this should be theoretically possible, and yesterday we made this feature available on both iOS and Android, together with many other improvements. It also supports migrating chats from KakaoTalk and Line – two other Pre-Telegram apps.
Nothing like this has ever been made possible by a major app, and our team had to implement some serious magic to make it work. We are happy with the result: moving messages to Telegram allows people to save disk space and stop worrying about third-party backups or changing devices.
The feature currently imports messages to the end of the target Telegram conversation, but retains the original timestamps of messages. Some folks have been asking whether we can mix the existing messages in a Telegram chat with the imported messages in one unified timeline. This should be possible if the target chat (where you import messages to) has fewer than 100 messages, so we’ve started to work on that.
We’ll also provide free APIs for third-party developers who want to create tools that will allow users to import messages to Telegram from anywhere. Hopefully, such tools will help add support for more apps than this first wave of three – and also allow users to import multiple chats or their entire inbox at once.
The original meaning of the paper plane on the Telegram logo means “freedom”. For us, freedom of choice and data portability are paramount. People should be in complete control over their own data – and their own lives.
Nothing like this has ever been made possible by a major app, and our team had to implement some serious magic to make it work. We are happy with the result: moving messages to Telegram allows people to save disk space and stop worrying about third-party backups or changing devices.
The feature currently imports messages to the end of the target Telegram conversation, but retains the original timestamps of messages. Some folks have been asking whether we can mix the existing messages in a Telegram chat with the imported messages in one unified timeline. This should be possible if the target chat (where you import messages to) has fewer than 100 messages, so we’ve started to work on that.
We’ll also provide free APIs for third-party developers who want to create tools that will allow users to import messages to Telegram from anywhere. Hopefully, such tools will help add support for more apps than this first wave of three – and also allow users to import multiple chats or their entire inbox at once.
The original meaning of the paper plane on the Telegram logo means “freedom”. For us, freedom of choice and data portability are paramount. People should be in complete control over their own data – and their own lives.
Telegram
Moving Chat History from Other Apps
Over 100 million new users joined Telegram this January, seeking more privacy and freedom. But what about the messages and memories that remain in older apps? Starting today, everyone can bring their chat history from apps like WhatsApp, Line and KakaoTalk.
Forwarded from Du Rove's Channel
Telegram became the most downloaded mobile app in the world in January 2021.
For the last 7.5 years, Telegram has steadily climbed the rankings for popular apps. Since its launch in 2013, Telegram’s user base has grown over 40% each year.
What’s our secret? Consistency.
For the last 7.5 years we’ve consistently defended the privacy of our users and regularly improved the quality and feature set of our apps.
Anyone who stays true to their values and regularly applies focused effort over a long period of time is bound to succeed in their area. This is true for any human occupation – sport, blogging, art, coding, business or studying.
For the last 7.5 years, Telegram has steadily climbed the rankings for popular apps. Since its launch in 2013, Telegram’s user base has grown over 40% each year.
What’s our secret? Consistency.
For the last 7.5 years we’ve consistently defended the privacy of our users and regularly improved the quality and feature set of our apps.
Anyone who stays true to their values and regularly applies focused effort over a long period of time is bound to succeed in their area. This is true for any human occupation – sport, blogging, art, coding, business or studying.