Facebook's Messenger app has hit the one billion user mark, joining its main app as well as WhatsApp and YouTube.
Facebook Messenger is on a mission to surpass being a simple communication tool by taking the place of more traditional forms of digital communication - such as SMS - and offering new ways for businesses to interact with people.
The social network claims that at present, around 10% of all VOIP calls globally are made via Messenger, and in June announced that Android users can send and receive SMSes via the app.
Facebook also states that over one billion messages are sent between people and businesses every month, and as the app gains users, it will become more attractive to businesses as a marketing and customer relations channel.
While the app continues to become more versatile and effective, as engineers work to improve its reliability as well as expand its functionality, Facebook Messenger is not immune to criticism, particularly for what many perceived as "forcing" Facebook's mobile user base to download the app.
After the app was first released in 2014, Facebook stopped allowing users to access their messages from within its primary app, leaving them with no option but to download Messenger if they wanted to read their Facebook messages without a desktop or laptop computer.
The app subsequently became the number-one app in Apple's App Store, but with a one-star average review, according to TechCruch.
At the time of writing, Facebook Messenger had a four-star review in both Apple's App Store and the Google Play Store for Android.
Share