Facebook has reportedly started testing WhatsApp integration with its popular social network, looking to find ways of unifying the two services.
Technology blog Geektime reports that Facebook has launched an updated test version of WhatsApp (v31.0.0.7.13) lets users send and share news content directly to WhatsApp via Facebook.
The feature appears as a ‘Send’ button alongside the usual status action buttons to a post in Facebook, and users can you can then share the item with a user in your WhatsApp contact list.
The Geektime team have also confirmed that the feature is currently unavailable for the general public, while beta testers can find the Send button with Facebook v32.
It is rumoured that the two apps will eventually support sending and receiving messages between them, while also sharing some common features through platform integration.
Earlier, WhatsApp CEO Jan Koum hinted that WhatsApp would continue to operate independently, regardless of the ongoing development for Facebook’s integration with the Android mobile messaging service.