The SMS usage is shrinking slowly, partly because of the IM booming. In this filed, the competition is global. The Asian players are becoming as stronger as their western counterparts.

1. Instant Messaging in APAC
by
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

2. Summary
1 32 4 5
KaKao Talk
Line
Wechat
Others
Globally
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

3. 1 32 4 5
KaKao Talk
Kakao Talk Story
What can I do on Kakao Talk
Kakao Talk Business Model
Kakao Talk Rates
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

4. 1 32 4 5
Kakao Talk Story
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
Released in March 2010, as Korea’s first mobile instant messenger,
KakaoTalk became an instant hit thanks to its free download onto
smartphones. After quickly overtaking Google Talk and WhatsApp, the first
mobile messenger in the world, KakaoTalk parlayed its platform to
become Korea’s No. 1 social networking service and provider of wildly
popular games.
Mars 2010
September 2010
1 million users
2010
December 2010
5 million users July 2011
20 million users
Mars 2012
40 million users
decembre2012
70 million users
Including 90% of Korea’s smartphone
owners
Feb 2013
80 million users
May 2013
90 million users
January 2010
First external funding of $5
million from 13 top-level
tech influencers in Korea,
including the founders of
Nexon, Hangame, and NC
Soft.
2010 2012
the move was made to form
close relationships with key
influencers in Korea, not for
money
2013
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

5. 1 32 4 5
1.2
1.1
1.3
1.4
What you can I do on Kakao Talk :
• Text
• VoIP
• Group chats/calls
• Send photos/audio/video
• Photo wall
Common services :
• Games
• Stickers/emoji
• Celebrity accounts
• Android launcher in the pipeline
• Available in : Korean, English, Spanish,
Chinese(Traditional),
Chinese(Simplified), Indonesian,
Japanese, Thai, Turkish, Italian, French,
German, Portuguese
Special powers:
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

6. 1 32 4 5
1.3
1.1
1.2
1.4
Kakao Talk Business Model :
Game Platform :
The social gaming platform is the fourth business
model developed by the Korean firm. Users can
play in-app games using KakaoTalk’s social API.
The game platform was a massive hit in Korea, and
soon after its launch seven games that integrated
with this rocketed to the top ten spot in Korea’s
Google Play. We’ve talked about one of its most
successful game Anipang recently.
Plus Friend Advertising :
The advertising aspect allows companies and
brands to communicate with the app’s users
People should add brands as their friends.
Digital Items :
KakaoTalk earns money by selling digital items
like premium emoticons and stickers to its users.
Companies and brands can cooperate with
KakaoTalk to produce their own special series of
emoticons as a brand marketing tool. The
revenue will then be shared between the brand
and the messaging startup.
1
3 4
Mobile Commerce:
Mobile commerce allows users to purchase
online goods and then send them to a friend via
the app as a gift. The friend will then be able to
redeem the gift through the corresponding
merchant. There are now more than 320 brands
that have cooperated with KakaoTalk for this
feature, with 7,700 items available for purchase.
2
L'Atelier BNP Paribas
2013/05

7. 1 32 4 5
1.4
1.1
1.2
1.3
Kakao Talk Rates
Ask to L’Atelier Asia
Please don’t hesitate to send an email to asia@mail.atelier.net
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

8. 1 32 4 5
Line
Line Story
What can I do on Line
Line Business Model
Line Rates
2.1
2.2
2.3
2.4
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

9. 1 32 4 5
Line Story
2.1
2.2
2.3
2.4
2011 2011 2012 2013
Mars 2011
23 June 2010
Line is launch.
November 2012
74 million users
decembre2012
100 million users Worlwide
May 2013
150 million users
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

10. 1 32 4 5
What can I do on Line
2.2
2.1
2.3
2.4
• Text
• VoIP
• Group chat
• Social timeline
• Share photos/location/audio/video
Common services :
• Kawaii characters with own cartoon show &
merchandising
• Stickers
• Games
• Celebrity accounts
• Use it from PC
• Reaches one-third of the country’s mobile phone
users
• Available : English, Japanese, Chinese,
Indonesian, Koran, Malay, Thai, Turkish,
Vietnamese, Spanish.
Special powers:
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

11. 1 32 4 5
Line Business Model
2.3
2.1
2.2
2.4
Stickers / Stamps ;
Users can buy special emoji, called “stickers” that
have everything from teddy bears juggling eggplants,
to bunnies with flames of anger in their eyes.
Stickers were pulling in about 300 million yen or $3.75
million per month in sticker sales in July 2012. Since
then, numbers are certainly higher now.
Mobile Games :
“Line” us the Freemium and free-to-play business model, a model very
popular in the digital gaming industry.
All of Line’s social games are free to play, but the large number of micro
transactions for digital goods within games and premium emoticons
became the main drivers of Line’s 4Q12 revenues of $45m.
Today, Line has only 24 games available, but they garnered more than
100million download
Brand Social Content :
Line also has sponsored brand accounts where Coca-Cola can sign up
for accounts that users can befriend or follow. They can also sponsor
packs of stickers.
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

12. 1 32 4 5
Line Rates
2.4
2.1
2.2
2.3
Ask to L’Atelier Asia
Please don’t hesitate to send an email to asia@mail.atelier.net
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

13. 1 32 4 5
WeChat
WeChat Story
What can I do on WeChat
WeChat Business Model
WeChat Rates
3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

14. 1 32 4 5
WeChat Story
3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
2011 2012 2013
Release of Weixin
January 2011
October 2011
International language
support added.
April 2012
Rebranded as Wechat
January 2012
… Futur
… Gaming Plateform
… Mobile payments
… Paid Publishing/Subscriptions
200 millions users
September 2011
300 million users Worldwide
100 million users
February2012
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

15. 1 32 4 5
What can I do on WeChat
3.2
3.1
3.3
3.4
• Text
• VoIP
• HD video chatting
• Group chats
• Send audio/photos/location
• Walkie-talkie mode
• Live group chat
Common services :
Special powers:
• Emoji/stickers
• Photo wall
• Locate nearby/other WeChat users who are also looking
to connect
• Leave audio messages for strangers to pick up
• Official accounts
• Desktop client
• Open API
• Gaming platform in the works
• Facebook connect L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

16. 1 32 4 5
WeChat Business Model
3.3
3.1
3.2
3.4
Gaming Plateform incoming
Payment integration - mCommerce
CRM :
Connect Brand’s CRM system with Brand’s Wechat Members CRM: save and
perform CRM operations costs. Post “rich media” content + adapt to Wechat
corporate communications : video, photo, text messages
Give to each Member an ID card with serial number, this ID Card will refers to a
customer profile and purchasing/sharing behavior
Specific Wechat user can be identified and selected regarding location,
background, purchases, etc…
Online to Offline (O2O) :
Drive Wechat Members to Brand Ecommerce Website: increase registrations, conversions, and
sales
Drive Wechat Members to retail store by using the geolocalization, QR Code, promotion
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

17. 1 32 4 5
WeChat Rates
3.3
3.1
3.2
3.4
Ask to L’Atelier Asia
Please don’t hesitate to send an email to asia@mail.atelier.net
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

18. 1 32 4 5
Instant
Messaging :
global
Overview

19. • Launch in 2008 from Netherlands, moved its
headquarters in India in mid-2011
• 100 million users
• 180,000 new registrations per day
• Used in more than 200 countries worldwide
• Available on Android, Symbian, iPhone, iPod touch,
J2ME, Windows and Mac desktop computers.
• Every fourth mobile user in India is a Nimbuzz user.
• Nimbuzz comes pre-installed in more than 210
number of handsets in India and is partnered almost
all the local and international OEMs
• Nimbuzz won the best mobile IM award for 2011
and the Best Nokia and Android app of the year
award @The Mobies in Dubai. - 2012
Nimbuzz :
1 32 4 5
Instant Messaging in Asia

20. 1 32 4 5
•From Japan
• Released: October 2012
• Users: ~5 million
• Created by social gaming platform DeNa,
• The only one in this list that sports a left hand side tab bar,
similar to the Facebook mobile app.
Comm :
•From Taiwan.
• Released: March 2012
• Users: ~5 million
• Centers its chat experience around allowing users to draw
pictures (and to add text bubbles to those pictures) and send
animated GIFs
• Recently added a Snapchat/Facebook Poke-like feature,
allowing users to send messages that disappear within 10
seconds.
• Recently raised funding and joined 500 Startups’ incubation
program.
Cubie :
Instant Messaging in Asia

21. 1 32 4 5
• From South Korea.
• Released: November 2011
• Users: 2 million+
• Also allows users to create albums together, write cute notes
to each other, and remember events like anniversaries
together.
• Between recently raised nearly $3 million in funding.
Between :
•From the Philippines
• Released: October 2010
• Users: 500,000+
• Currently sitting in 28th position in the Apple App Store in the
social networking category
• The app doesn’t have any notable additions beyond the
basics.
•And hasn’t grown much over the past three years.
Chikka :
Instant Messaging in Asia

22. 1 32 4 5
• From Vietnam.
• Released: August 2012
• Users: 500,000+
• Made by sVNG (formerly Vina Gaming)
• At the top of the Vietnamese iOS App Store.
• Allows users to send drawings natively in the app,
• Allows users to play a Vietnamese version of Draw Something.
• Got animated stickers with sound like KakaoTalk, featured
mainly for Lunar New Year.
• Allows users to find new friends within a five kilometer radius.
Zalo :
• From Japan (only available in Australia, New Zealand, and
India)
• Released: February 2013
• Users: 50,000+
• The Japanese game platform juggernaut is stepping up its
game by entering the chat app arena. It’s too soon to tell with
the numbers, and the app only carries the basic features for
now, but it’s bound to start integrating with the backing of
GREE’s many game developers and designers.
GREE Messenger :
Instant Messaging in Asia
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

23. • From South Africa
• Released: 2007
• Users: 50 million users
• Largest Mobile Network in Africa
• Runs on multiple mobile and computing plateforms
• Can connect to Yahoo, Icq, Google Talk, Facebook, AIM,
Windows Live Messenger
• Malaysia, India, Indonesia, United Kingdom, United States,
Nigeria, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Spain
Mxit :
1 32 4 5
Instant Messaging : Global
Overview
• From USA
• Released: 2009
• Users: ~280 million users
• Supports iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia/Symbian, and
Windows Phone
• $0.99 (iOS), free 7 month trial, then $0.99 pr year
• Text chat
• Group chat
• Status messages
• Voice messages
• Broadcast messages
• File transfers/MMS (images, video and audio)
• Sharing location
What’s App
L'Atelier BNP Paribas - 2013/05

24. • From USA
• Released: August 2009
• Users:
• Since december 2012, ability to use Facebook Messenger
without a Facebook account by using a name and phone
number
• Runs on multiple mobile and computing plateforms
• Free calls, free texting
Facebook Messenger
1 32 4 5
Instant Messaging : Global
Overview

25. Company Kakao NHN WhatsApp Tencent
Country Korea Korea U.S. China
Date of launch March 2010 June 2011 May 2009 January 2011
Nb of users 90 million 150 million 200 million 320 million
Geographical
reach:
Global Global Global Global
Main Markets South Korea Japan US, Europe China, Southeast
Asia
Languages
supported:
13 12 23 15
Latest reported
revenues:
$45Million in 2012 $59million in Q1
in 2012
About $100
Million annually
None Yet
Comparison
1 32 4 5
L'Atelier BNP Paribas
2013/05

26. L’Atelier Management Consulting (Shanghai) Ltd.
Cloud Nine Plaza, 9/F
1118, West Yan'an Road | 200052 Shanghai | China
T 86 21 62 81 85 33 | www.atelier.net | red@mail.atelier.net