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Is Kakao already dominating the market in the Philippines?

Messaging app rises to the top after two weeks.

Is Kakao already dominating the market in the Philippines?
Korean messaging giant Kakao looks set to continue impressing in a year that has already seen the firm reach a number of significant milestones.

Its KakaoTalk mobile messaging service, which already has over 100 million users, has, according to Kakao, already become the number one chat app on iOS and Android in the Philippines, despite launching two weeks ago.

Whilst the app is currently sitting at the top of the free download charts, no official figures have been released, meaning it’s unclear as to whether or not the app is officially the most used in the country.

Ad power

However, if the early reports do prove to be true, and KakaoTalk has indeed become the number one messaging app in the space of two weeks - beating rival apps Viber, WhatsApp, Line, and WeChat in the process - you may be inclined to ask, how?

Since launching in the Philippines, the messaging service has rolled out a number of high profile television advertisements, featuring some of the most popular celebrities in the country: singer Sarah Geronimo, and K-pop band Big Bang.



In a move designed to compliment those adverts, the app also allows users to directly interact with their favourite stars by adding the celebrities to their friends list in order to receive fresh updates and content.

Tailored experience

Indeed, it seems that high profile advertising appears to be doing the trick, though this isn’t the first time a company has taken that route.

Rival messaging service Tencent's WeChat has taken similar steps in Spain, where it's unveiled footballing celebrity Lionel Messi as its poster boy.



But, could there be another reason for KakaoTalk’s instant success?

Tim Jang, KakaoTalk’s Philippines director, certainly seems to think so, as he explains that the company has been working on tailoring the KakaoTalk experience for specific markets.

Jang, has stated that the company will continue to work on "creating localized stickers and content that are more appealing and relatable to Filipino users."

"By listening to our users, we can customize the application’s features based on their wants and needs. We look forward to launching them here in the future," conclused Jang.

[Source: TechInAsia]

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