![]() ![]() “It is easy to see why we have some different services flourishing in different regions,” said Shintaro Tabata, SVP of corporate sales at LINE. ![]() Both have substantial ecommerce and messaging app properties. (which owns LINE, Japan’s most popular messaging app). Observers at the time characterized the acquisition as a way for Rakuten to shore up against rivals like Tencent (which owns WeChat) and Naver Corp. Of course, Rakuten isn’t exactly a first mover. In Japan, for example, Rakuten integrated Viber with its Super Points loyalty service, enabling sales through the app and expanding the size of its loyalty and data collection program. WeChat has expanded the value proposition of chat apps by becoming a “platform for services and distribution,” said Eric Setton, Tango’s CTO and co-founder.Īlthough Tango is one of the companies that has native ad units, Setton described paid media opportunities as secondary to the need to become a platform for commerce and distribution. Notably, Kik’s recent $50 million investment from WeChat owner Tencent came about because of the companies’ “shared vision over turning chat into more than just messaging, and to be an operating system for consumers and users,” said Kik President Josh Jacobs. Some messaging apps integrate native ads, but as Livingston points out, few are doing it “and it’s not their focus.” “It’s very difficult to monetize the core messenger app experience,” he said. And messaging apps downloaded last year have had a 62% retention rate, much higher than the 11% average across all mobile apps.īut for all that potential, the industry is still grappling with how to translate growing adoption into a bottom-line profit, said Ted Livingston, Kik’s CEO and co-founder. ![]() Investors are keen on mobile messaging services because of their huge, loyal audiences.Įarlier this year, the top four messaging apps – WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, WeChat and Viber – combined to surpass the active user count of the top four social media apps: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. And Tango, just a few weeks later, got a $250 million investment from Chinese ecommerce giant Alibaba. That same month, Rakuten bought Viber for $900 million. In February 2014, Facebook dished out $22 billion for WhatsApp. Every celebrity and fashion company, hospital and bank must have WeChat accounts, absorbing much of the combined function of social media, mobile and digital in the US.īut can an incumbent chat app mimic that success outside of China? Investors seem to be betting on it. Instead of monetizing advertising or marketing opportunities, WeChat monetizes access to service and customers. “Its importance to daily life in China can’t be overstated,” said Bessie Lee, the CEO of WPP China. Yes, WeChat, a free app with 600 million monthly active users (100 million fewer than Facebook Messenger), enables chatting, but it’s also a platform for services and commerce. Just as device manufacturers want to be Apple, ecommerce shops want to be Amazon and social networks look up to Facebook, China-based WeChat is the chat application others seek to emulate. ![]()
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