By Simran Sabherwal
Since its launch in Japan in 2011, the Line app has seen tremendous growth worldwide, including the India market. From an instant messaging (IM) application, the company is now positioning the brand as a social networking medium. Daman Soni, Head of India Business Development, Line, tells us why the company is betting big on India and what more is in line
Q] What is the fundamental principle of your marketing strategy for the Line app?
We want Line to be loved globally and it is important to provide service or content deeply related to local culture and lifestyle through it. Therefore, Line looks to co-operate with local companies and operators for localization of content and marketing.
Q] What was the rationale behind signing on actor Katrina Kaif as your brand ambassador in India?
Besides Katrina’s vibrant persona, pan-India youth appeal and confident attitude, she is known for her association with consumer technology brands and this makes her a great fit. Our association is part of a strategic roadmap with youth as the focus and roping in Katrina for the campaign gave a direct touch-point with the target audience. As Katrina understands Line well and has personally experienced it, she will play a vital role in adding momentum while introducing the service to our users and educating the target audience. In a global first for the company, Line released free India-exclusive stickers featuring photographs of Katrina Kaif.
Q] How big is the user base of Line currently in India and globally?
Line has more than 330 million users globally. It is one of 26 apps available on Google Play that have managed to pass the 100 million download checkpoint, and only 12 of these are services and apps not provided by Google. Line ranks No. 1 in the free application category in 60 countries. We have over 50 million users in Japan and over 16 million users in India, and the number of users has increased steadily here. We are also scaling up our India operations.
Q] What are the learnings from other markets that you are looking to implement in India?
We have already seen a fantastic uptake in our app in markets outside Japan. After solid growth in Asia and Europe, making inroads into the Indian market was a part of our overall strategy. With its huge youth population, increasing mobile and Internet penetration, lowering bandwidth costs, India makes a hotbed for the Line messenger application, which will change the way people communicate in the country. We are confident that with our best of breed and feature rich service; Line will see success in the India market.
Q] How do you see messaging apps evolving in India? What is the USP of Line?
The basic advantages of an IM application over SMS is its ability to provide instantaneous communication and easy collaboration at lower cost. One of the main reasons why Line is being adopted so rapidly compared to other major messenger apps is its unique sticker feature. It is extremely well-received by users as they can send large-sized character pictures with the tap of a finger, thereby providing a simple, casual and exciting way to express their emotions. The sticker characters, include Line’s original characters and a variety of famous characters such as Disney, Hello Kitty and Ironman, are especially loved by the Asian youth, igniting Line’s growth in many regions. In addition, Line contains free voice call service and provides high quality related apps such as gaming and camera as a platform service.
Q] What is the kind of localized content we can expect to see on Line in India?
Line will focus on global services in terms of communication, but content is going to be localized for the India market. We are preparing to release localized character stickers designed and created by famous Indian artistes and illustrators. Line has also partnered with the following:
- Sony Music, to facilitate direct interface with avid music lovers
- Idea Cellular, that will offer special data plans targeted specifically for customers who use Line
- Major Bollywood films, such as ‘Krrish 3’ and ‘Dhoom3’, to give exclusive content to customers
Q] How do you differentiate yourself from other messaging services like WeChat and WhatsApp?
Though most of the applications available are for free or at a nominal cost, there is fierce competition. So the key to sustain in the face of such competition is constant innovation and differentiating one’s offerings. This is where Line gets an edge over its competitors as apart from the normal text and image communications that other IMs provide, Line differentiates itself with its unique stickers, video calling, official accounts and voice chat (with group chat).
Q] What is your growth strategy in India? How are you looking at India to propel your global growth?
India is the world’s second largest mobile phone market in terms of subscribers. According to Cyber Media Research, there was a growth of 167.3% on an annual basis in smartphone shipments in India. This trend clearly indicates the fast movement from feature phones to smartphones and subsequently from SMS to IMs. At Line, our main stratagem is to tap the growing popularity for instant messengers. With our record of more than 180 million downloads in only 23 months of our initial launch, we are quite confident about repeating the success story in India. As we have just entered the Indian market, our strategy would be to establish Line as a youth brand as they form our major consumer base and look to connect with them with the look and feel of our application, real-time conversations, beyond plain chats.
Q] Being a free messaging app, what is your revenue model and which stream contributes the maximum revenue? Are there any new monetizing models you are looking at?
While other IM/SNS apps rely on one single business model, such as app-purchase (WhatsApp) or banner advertising, we have three types of revenue streams: 1. Paid stickers (B2C) - In addition to basic Line character stickers provided for free, paid stickers are also available for download at the Sticker Shop via in-app-purchase system. According to App Annie, the industry leader in app store analytics and market intelligence for the global app economy, thanks to successful sales of stickers in May 2013, Line was ranked No.1 top grossing app on Google Play, No.2 on iTunes app store (excluding games). 2. Game inapp purchases (B2C) - Line provides 30 game titles through its gaming service, Line Game, which has been downloaded more than 150 million times in only 11 months since its release in July 2012.
The gaming system enables users to share their scores with their Line friends according to ranking, and allows friends to battle through games. According to App Annie, in May 2013, Line was ranked No.3 top grossing gaming app publisher in the world on Google Play, No.10 on iTunes app store. 3. Official account & sponsored stickers (B2B) – Partner brands can open their own official brand accounts on Line for marketing, which allow users who befriend them to benefit from discount offers and coupons.
Through a number of campaigns, brand accounts have proved to be more effective than conventional Internet advertising methods in terms of reach, engagement and other important marketing factors.
Also, sponsored stickers are an effective marketing tool to promote products and raise brand awareness. Depending on market situation or user numbers in each country, we decide which one among the three to focus on. In India, since majority of mobile users prefer prepaid services, we assume the B2B model would be more suitable.
Q] Can a messaging service like the Line app be as flexible as FB and Twitter?
The line between IMs and social networking sites is thinning gradually as IMs ought to be more than the regular chat messengers in order to be massloved. In Line, with our Home page and Timeline feature, we aim to provide a complete and comprehensive interface to the user where they are well-informed about their friends’ activities; they can express their like or dislike of somebody’s post/comment. It’s almost like a one-stop destination for your virtual life apart from its regular chat and free call options.
Feedback: simran.sabherwal@exchange4media.com
