Just taking Facebook Messenger as a US market example, it still lacks integration on games, QR codes, food delivery and taxi services
One of the big takeaways from the Internet Trends Report 2015 by Mary Meeker in terms of Asia was around messaging apps, and innovation in thereof. While the region takes its share of flack for “cloning” startup ideas from the US and other more developed markets, when it comes to messaging platforms Asia has very much been at the forefront. Let’s take a look at exactly how.
In this part of the world, the three local behemoths in the messaging apps in the space are clear: LINE (launched 2011, Japan), WeChat (launched 2011, China) and Kaokao Talk (launched 2010, Korea).
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While it’s a given that all such apps will launch with the most basic text messaging, there are many more features that have been built in over the years — and these three apps have almost always been ahead of Western rivals such as WhatsApp (launched 2009), Facebook Messenger (launched 2011) and Snapchat (launched 2011).
The kind of features I’m referring to are the likes of voice and video calling, payments, stickers, games, commerce, media, QR codes, food delivery, taxi services, user stories/moments (news feeds), and developer platforms. All three of the Asian messaging apps tick each and every one of these boxes, with the exception of video calling and food delivery in the case of Kaokao.
As just one example — WhatsApp only introduced voice calling this year, whereas LINE has always had it as an integrated feature since launch, WeChat since 2014, and Kaokao since 2012. As the taxi booking space has heated up in Asia, all three platforms have stayed ahead of the curve with offerings either since last year or this year. WeChat has teamed up with Didi Dache, Kaokao launched its own service called Kaokao Taxi, and LINE did likewise in Tokyo.
Just taking Facebook Messenger as a US market example: it still lacks integration on games, QR codes, food delivery, and taxi services. Snapchat lags in even more key areas since launching its chat feature last year, though it does offer video calling.
But in sheer user numbers, WhatsApp is still far and away the leader of the bunch with 800 million active monthly users, compared to Facebook Messenger’s 600 million, Snapchat’s 100 million, WeChat’s 549 million, LINE’s 205 million, and Kaokao’s 48 million.
If you’re interested in diving into the full report, you can find it here. Or check out TechCrunch’s excellent highlights and analysis here.
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Image Credit: Microsiervos Geek Crew / Flickr
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