The Signal messenger has rolled out its first premium feature — the ability to create secure backups for media and text messages. Users can subscribe for $1.99 per month to gain access to media archiving and unlimited text message storage.

All data is encrypted end-to-end, and access is granted only through a unique recovery key. If this key is lost, the company cannot assist with recovery.

Signal explains the introduction of this paid option as a necessity to cover the costs of storing large volumes of data. As a non-profit organization that does not monetize user data or display ads, the service is exploring alternative funding methods.

For non-subscribers, media is stored only for the last 45 days, while text messages can be kept indefinitely but are limited to 100 MB. According to Vice President of Engineering Jim O’Leary, this capacity should suffice even for active users.

Backups are created daily, regardless of account or payment status. In the future, Signal plans to allow users to store archives in a location of their choice.

This new feature is already available in the beta version of Signal for Android. A public release, as well as support for iOS and desktop platforms, is expected soon.