Snapchat Discovery to Bring Disappearing News, Videos and Ads: Report

Snapchat Inc, developer of a mobile app that lets users send messages that disappear within seconds, might expand its service to videos, news articles and advertisements, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.

The California-based company is in talks with advertisers and media companies about a service called Snapchat Discovery, the Journal reported, citing sources.

Snapchat Discovery, rumoured to debut in November, will show content and ads to Snapchat users, the Journal quoted the sources as saying.

At least a dozen media companies have shown interest in providing content for Snapchat Discovery, the Journal said.

Snapchat Discovery will allow users to read publications and watch video clips by holding down a finger on the screen, as they do with photos and other messages on the app, the report said.

WSJ notes, "The offering could provide the three-year-old startup with its first revenue and demonstrate its potential value to investors. Snapchat last year raised funding at a valuation of more than $2 billion and spurned an acquisition offer of about $3 billion by Facebook Inc. Since then, it has sought to raise money from investors at increasingly high valuations."

Snapchat, popular among teenage users, was not immediately available for comment outside regular business hours.

The company last month added new filters for special locations, dubbed 'Geofilters'. The feature can be used on Snapchat for Android and iOS by swiping right on the screen of the clicked image, which brings specific location stickers or adds just the name of the city to the snapped picture. Notably, a user needs to enable location services on the device to use the new 'Geofilters'.

Written with inputs from Reuters