When using free messaging platforms like Signal, it’s normal for you to get curious about how the company makes money because profit is the fundamental goal of most applications.
And if you use Signal, you will notice it has no ads or other ways of trying to generate money for the company. With over 40 million users, how does Signal make money to help sustain and run the company?
Signal is a non-profit organization. Hence, it focuses on giving its users secure communication and other activities. Signal mainly makes money through donations from different organizations alongside its investors. Despite millions of users, the messaging platform has no ads to generate income. Thus, its main source of income is from investors and donations.
This guide covers what Signal is and how it works. Next, we will discuss in detail how Signal makes money. Hopefully, by the end of this post, you will be comfortable understanding everything about Signal.
What Is Signal?
When you want to use a messaging platform, one of the things you consider is security. Everyone is comfortable using a platform that guarantees their security while offering them the convenience they need to engage in their activities comfortably. Among the messaging platforms available in the market, Signal is the most secure.
Signal is a non-profit organization that was launched in 2014. The messaging platform is an alternative to WhatsApp, offering a secure space to contact your family and friends. Over the years, Signal has grown to have over 40 million users, which keeps increasing.
With Signal, you can communicate with your friends via text, voice, and video calls. Signal focuses on creating encrypted communication to guarantee the privacy of its users. During communication, Signal relies on public and private keys. The private key is used for encryption and decryption on the user’s end, while the public key is stored on the server.
Hence, even Signal can’t intercept your communication. Moreover, Signal doesn’t store your information. It only keeps a tab on the day but not the exact timestamps when you used the platform. You can confirm this as the platform has publicly availed its code for anyone to view and contribute where necessary.
Your Signal account is associated with your phone number, but you also get a Signal pin that helps with authentication. The bottom line is that Signal is a reliable and secure messaging platform that ensures your privacy and security are its top-notch priority.
How Does Signal Make Money?
Having discussed what Signal is, the next step is to understand how Signal works to help us know how Signal makes money. Here’s the thing, when you use Signal, you will notice there are no ads on the platform. Thus, we can’t say it relies on in-app purchases to generate income.
So, how does Signal make money? The thing with Signal is that a non-profit organization owns the application. As such, its focus is not on making money. Instead, it focuses on giving users ample time while enjoying its privacy and security when messaging.
Signal relies on donations and investors to make money. A good example is the donation made by Brian Acton of $50 million in 2018. This donation remains the largest the platform has received as of 2023.
Anyone can donate to Signal, and the donations are hidden to ensure no information is disclosed. You can make your donations via its donation page. Besides, donations are accepted in any regular currency and cryptocurrency.
Signal hopes to attain a large user base, such as 100 million active users. At such a point, the donations made by the users can manage to keep the platform self-sustaining, providing room and resources for the company to grow and hopefully introduce more features.
Conclusion
Signal is a non-profit organization. Thus, it mainly makes money from the donations it receives and the different investors it has. We’ve discussed what Signal is and how it works. Moreover, we’ve explained how Signal makes money.
