Wechat announced on October 29 2013, Wechat would open a number of APIs to verified public accounts. It would charge public accounts for 300 yuan (USD 49) annually for verification fee.
User profile API allows public accounts to get user ID and location information. It is a good news for third-party developers, they could build up member information.
Grouping followers API allows account manager to group followers and send them messages separately.
Location API could get users location information. It’s very crucial for LBS app.
However, some API would not be opened to all public accounts.
Wechat payment API is crucial for Tencent’s mobile shopping strategy, even Jack Ma, former CEO of Alibaba was afraid of Wechat payment. Tencent is quite cautious about Wechat payment API, therefore, they would only open it to a few verified accounts. Enterprises need to get verification from Tenpay, which requires a lot of certifications.
Message sending API allows public accounts to send messages one on one with no number limits. Wechat focuses on user experience, so this API would not open to most public accounts either.
Follow me API allows users to follow public accounts on webpage or sharing pages by simply clicking the following button. This time, it would not open to every public accounts.
Sharing API allows users to share the pages by clicking the sharing button on pages. It would not completely open, either.
Unfollow API allows public account managers to see the people even if they have unfollowed the public account.
Address API allows public account managers to gain users’ address to receive packages from other public accounts.
CRM API allows enterprises to upload their members’ information. Whether it will open or not, we cannot say right now.
The core of Wechat open API new policies is to improve user experience. For public accounts managers, they should try to improve their services to attract users rather than simply advertising themselves.