WhatsApp joins arsenal of online luxury amid race for customers

epa05287194 (FILE) A file picture dated 07 April 2016 shows the logo of the messaging application WhatsApp on a smartphone in Taipei, Taiwan. For the second time in six months, a Brazilian judge on 02 May 2016 ordered a temporary shutdown of the Facebook-owned WhatsApp messaging service. The ruling requires Brazilian mobile providers to block the service for 72 hours beginning at 1700 GMT on 02 May 2016. The order was issued in response to a motion from the Federal Police, who are seeking to force Facebook to comply with previous court orders requiring the company to reveal the content of texts sent via WhatsApp by the defendants in a drug trafficking case. EPA/RITCHIE B. TONGO *** Local Caption *** 52688299

Online luxury retailer Yoox Net-a-Porter said it’s developing technology to allow well-to-do customers to buy products directly through WhatsApp as the e-commerce market for Prada and Versace goods becomes more competitive. 

Yoox Net-a-Porter’s personal shoppers already communicate with top clients via the text-messaging service, and the Milan-based company plans to expand its use of the mobile app, Chief Executive Officer Federico Marchetti said in an interview in London.