Mobile messaging app Line signs up 5 million users in India

Mobile instant messaging app, Line,
which officially unveiled in India three
weeks back, claims to have 5 million
registered users in the country.
It's worth pointing out that while the
brand marketing campaign for the app,
including two television advertisements
started this month, the app has been
available for download on app stores of
various smartphone platforms for a
long time. So it's likely that the 5
million figure also includes users that
signed up before the India marketing
initiative started.
Commenting on the achievement,Jun
Masuda, Chief Strategy and Marketing
Officer (CSMO) of Line Corporation,
said, "We are extremely happy with the
response to our service in India. This is
the testimony that we are in the right
market with the right product and at
the right time. We believe that the
framework for web based messaging
has already been laid with consumers
hooked to it and now are looking for a
product that can elevate their
communication experience through
richer features and functionality. Line
comes in at the right time with an app
that will transform the way people
communicate in India".
"Our aim is to achieve 10 million users
in India in a few months. We are
confident with our feature rich
product and market specific
localization, India will be one of the
key markets contributing to our global
growth," he added.
Line is similar to other P2P mobile
messengers such as WhatsApp, Viber,
WeChat and Hike, but its USP is its
stickers and voice chat features. The
app offers more than 8,000 stickers,
out of which some are part of premium
packs which need to be bought via in-
app purchase. This is a major
monetization model for the app. Line
even inks 4 week deals with brands to
offer customised stickers.
Line also monetizes through tie-up with
brands to create official brand
accounts and artist accounts. The
Japanese app company informed that it
had signed a deal with Sony India
under the same arrangement.
The app is popular in markets such as
Japan, Thailand, Taiwan, and Spain,
and is now targeting the Indian
market. It intends to offer localised
stickers and support for Indian
languages, in the near future.
Line claims to have 200 million
registered users worldwide, as on July
21, 2013, and says that 80.4 percent
among these are monthly active users.
The app is available on all major mobile
OS platforms, including iOS, Android,
Windows Phone and BlackBerry.