Join us Dec. 1-3 in Nashville for the Digiday Programmatic Marketing Summit
You can now replay Snapchats for 99 cents, if you’re into that sort of thing
Snapchat is figuring out a new way to make money since selling Snap swag apparently won’t pay the bills.
Today, the photo messaging app started selling three extra replays of friend’s snaps for 99 cents. Snapchat says in a blog post that the one free replay each day was “sometimes frustrating” to the users who receive several snaps a day. Ten replays can be bought for $2.99 and 20 replays cost $4.99.
“You can use a Replay on any Snap you receive, but you can only Replay any Snap once,” Snapchat’s rules state, ensuring that the ephemeral nature of the app remains. The price tag was widely viewed as ludicrous considering users will not be getting much in return; even Snapchat acknowledges that it’s a “little pricey — but time is money! ;)”
And if there’s one thing Snapchat likes, it’s money. In addition to sponsored filters, Snapchat has been charging brands big bucks to be featured in its Live Stories and Discover channels, although users are lightning quick to tap past them, much to the frustration of ad buyers.
Judging by the initial reaction, it doesn’t sound like too many people will pay for the new feature:
We have to pay to start using @Snapchat‘s features… FUCK THAT.
— Shay. (@xPleaseSingToMe) September 15, 2015
The whole point of the internet is to NOT PAY for anything. GL @Snapchat — Leilani Pips™ (@PipsToDollars) September 15, 2015
Snapchat did release some free things too that may appease the haters. There are now Lenses that add “masks” or filters:
I know what my night is going to consist of… @Snapchat pic.twitter.com/CXrj0gB86k
— chl0e (@chl0eperry) September 15, 2015
Finally, also tucked away are descriptions of the Friend Emojis that appear on the “Send To…” list that can now customized.
Thank You @Snapchat I understand what these emojis mean now. pic.twitter.com/MjpnCke9BD
— Tori G. (@tori_gonzalez05) September 15, 2015
What a thrilling day.
More in Media
Creators say it’s difficult to make money from news — with platform rules and brand guidelines
With more people getting news from creators than traditional media, those creators are still trying to build sustainable businesses.
Why CNN International is building for agentic ad market that barely exists yet
CNN International is still chasing its first agent-sold dollar by Q1.
Media Briefing: The transatlantic push to rein in stealth bots is gathering pace
U.S. and U.K. publishers are pushing for laws to crack down on stealth AI crawlers as bot scraping surges and demands for transparency grow.