Profits will be shared between the brand and Kakao. Brands and artists can cooperate with Kakao to create their own set of emoticons and sell them to their fans. KakaoTalk also sells digital items like emoticons that users can add to their messages. It puts up posters in shops that ask customers to add Uniqlo as a ‘plus friend’, the customer will then be entitled to a discount and will receive regular updates from the brand. An example of a brand that uses the app for its marketing purposes is fashion retailer Uniqlo. Similar to Facebook, except that for every message send the brand has to pay KakaoTalk a fee. Brands can send messages and offer coupon deals. Kakao’s ‘plus friend’ functionality gives brands the possibility to communicate with their followers. KakaoTalk makes a profit by letting brands pay for using the app as an online marketing tool and by selling digital goods to users. Unlike WhatsApp, users do not have to pay for the use of basic services.
#Kakaotalk korean free#
Downloading and usage of the app is free of charge. KakaoTalk has a smart business model that consists of several ways of monetizing.
Several telcos have sued Kakao over this but so far without results. A potential disaster for telecommunication companies who see their profits shrink fast. Smartphone users in South Korea are therefore using KakaoTalk to send messages more and more and are making less use of (paid) SMS messages. Chatting through KakaoTalk is free of charge and easy.
#Kakaotalk korean android#
Kpop stars), Kakao’s strong focus on Android (90% of Koreans own an Android mobile phone) and because KakaoTalk is a truly mobile app. There are multiple reasons for this success, from offering local content (eg. The services Kakao is offering are far from innovative but the app still managed to pass Facebook is becoming the most used mobile app of South Korea. KakaoTalk was launched in 2010 by Korean entrepreneur BeongSooKim. KakaoTalk is spreading its wings and is on its way to becoming a serious competitor for other social giants like Facebook, Twitter, Path, and WhatsApp.
Daily over 2.3 billion messages are being sent and over 90% of Korean smartphone users use KakaoTalk. This mobile app gives users the possibility to send messages, make free WIFI phone calls, play games, share photos, and videos and follow their favorite bands and artists. KakaoTalk is the most popular social networking app in South Korea.