Telegram is gearing up to offer a premium subscription tier, if the latest iOS beta is anything to go by. A range of stickers and reaction emojis were uncovered in the iOS 8.72 beta. When selected, users are asked to sign up for a premium service in order to make use of the stickers, according to an Android Authority report.

Help keep Telegram’s lights on

Telegram has been free pretty much since it launched. It’s about time we saw something like this. Last year was the first time the company earned revenue, thanks to premium features and an ad platform. Before that, it was running off co-founder Pavel Durov’s savings. That’s not sustainable, so it’s time to start earning.

The premium features announced last year were aimed at businesses using the platform and its public one-to-many channels. Previously, Telegram was firm on its stance that it will never charge for existing features. That may be so, but these new discoveries are definitely aimed at the everyday user.

Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait a little longer before we get important details like pricing and any other perks subscribers will be privy to.

Avatar: The Feature

The folks over on the Telegram subreddit r/Telegram may have uncovered another feature destined for a premium tier. Either that or they uncovered something new before Telegram announced new features in its monthly update. An avatar creator feature was uncovered in the beta version of the macOS app.

It appears to offer more options for personalising your profile. Instead of the default letters-on-a-solid-colour background, users will have the option of using their favourite emoji or sticker with a gradient background. This seems like it would be a free feature, but there’s no telling just yet.

Odds are Telegram will put the matter to bed rather soon. We’re not keen on playing the ‘Is this a free or premium feature?’ game with them, however.