According to Vedomosti, with reference to the Big Four operators, in 2022 the Telegram messenger for the first time bypassed WhatsApp (is a subsidiary of META, which was recognized as extremist and prohibited in Russia) in terms of user traffic. According to operators, by the beginning of 2023, the share of Telegram amounted to 60-80% of the total traffic.
According to the information presented by Vimpelcom, in 2022, the TELEGRAM traffic volume exceeded WhatsApp and continues to grow, while WhatsApp does not have traffic changes. The volume of traffic not only reflects the popularity of the service, but also how many users transmit heavy content through it, especially the video, as the company explained.
According to MTS, the share of Telegram is about 80% of user activity, continuing to bypass whatsApp. But by the number of WhatsApp users, other messengers are still ahead of other messengers. According to the representative of Megafon, in the last two weeks of December last year, the share of Telegram in the total traffic in messengers was 61%, and WhatsApp was 28%.
According to Mediascope, the number of Telegram users in Russia doubled and amounted to 48.8 million people a day for January 2023. The average time on the platform increased from 23 to 39 minutes a day. At the same time, the number of WhatsApp users increased by 5 million per day, to 76 million people. The average time spent on the platform was 33 minutes a day against 31 minutes a year earlier.