Premium Telegram features that appeared with the app's beta release in May will soon be available to paying users, engadget reports.
Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram, confirmed that the app will launch a subscription plan called Telegram Premium later this month.
Durov did not discuss the specific benefits that come with the plan, and said it would give paid users additional features, speed, and resources, as well as first-hand access to the app's latest offerings.
The founder of Telegram explained that many people are asking the service to lift restrictions on chats, media, and file downloads.
However, doing this for everyone will result in huge traffic and server costs beyond what they can afford.
Durov also assured users in his announcement that Telegram will continue to release new free features despite having a paid category.
On top of that, free users will be able to enjoy some of the new premium option futures, including the ability to view larger-than-usual documents, media, and posters sent by paying members.
A previous report by tech website Beebom says that Premium subscribers will have the ability to upload files up to 4GB in size, and will enjoy up to twice the limits of non-paying users when it comes to the number of channels they can join, among other things. .
Bebom also says that the premium subscription will cost $5 per month, though we won't know for sure until the option is launched.
Durov concluded his announcement by saying, "While our experiences with privacy-focused ads on individual public channels have been more successful than we expected, I believe Telegram should be funded primarily by its users, not advertisers. This way our users will always be our top priority."