Snapchat is to offer new features through a paid subscription fee.
The photo-sharing app - which was launched back in 2013 and became one of the most downloaded apps of all time but has faced competition in recent years from the likes of TikTok and Instagram - is in the "initial stages" of testing Snapchat Plus, which will offer exclusive features to users for a fee.
A Snap, Inc. spokesperson told The Verge: "We’re doing early internal testing of Snapchat Plus, a new subscription service for Snapchatters. We’re excited about the potential to share exclusive, experimental, and pre-release features with our subscribers, and learn more about how we can best serve our community."
According to screenshots and information posted to Twitter by app researcher Alessandro Paluzzi, the app is testing out new features including the ability to pin one friend as a "#1 BFF" on the app and will be able to change the Snapchat icon as well as see which of their friends have re-watched their Snapchat Stories amongst other things.
He said in a tweet: "Snapchat+ gives you access to exclusive, experimental and pre-release features. So... by subscribing to #Snapchat+ you can either pin a friend as a #1 BFF, get access to exclusive Snapchat icons, display a badge in your profile, see your orbit with BFF, or see your Friend's whereabouts in the last 24 hours, see how many friends have rewatched your story."
According to screenshots posted by the insider, the subscription fees currently stand at €4.59 (€$4.84) per month or 45.99 ($48.50) per year.
