Facebook's WhatsApp rolls out option for disappearing photos, videos to take on Snapchat

FILE PHOTO: WhatsApp app is seen on a smartphone in this illustration taken, July 13, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

(Reuters) - Users of Facebook Inc's WhatsApp can now send disappearing photos and videos on its platform starting this week, as it looks to better compete with Snap Inc's photo messaging app Snapchat.

The feature, called View Once, will let photos and videos disappear from the chat after they have been seen, Facebook said in a blog post https://about.fb.com/news/2021/08/view-once-photos-and-videos-on-whatsapp on Tuesday, adding that once the media content has been viewed, the message will be shown as "opened."