Are direct messages supposed to substitute channel bots?

Update: Yes.

Since direct messages have made bots less useful for contacting channel admins, how else could we creatively repurpose the Balkan Bot?

I'll be reading you, friends!

❗This isn’t Balkan news, but I really wanted to share a few thoughts on the future of Telegram.

Telegram has been breaking the rules of traditional social media from day one, and I honestly believe channels are the next big thing here. With the right updates, they could completely transform the platform — and the way we create and share content.

Telegram is clearly moving toward helping creators like us at Balkan Spectator work more professionally.

Now, what I’d love to see in a future update is this:

– Let people buy and sell channels, just like usernames. Some channels are basically independent media outlets now. If Bezos can buy The Washington Post, why can’t we have that option on Telegram?

– Allow channel mergers. Yes. You read it right. Some channels could be absorbed by bigger ones through agreement, others could merge like companies do. It would open up new ways to grow and collaborate.

Even if just one of these ideas became real — it would be a game changer.

If you agree, feel free to share this message in your own channel. Let’s try to get it in front of Pavel Durov 👀