The WhatsApp paradigm is something we all take for granted.
To most of us, it just another app and it serves a purpose. It is one of many things that we use daily. But is it just one of many?
The first question is can you go a day without WhatsApp or any other mobile instant messaging platform like Telegram, Signal or Line.
The second is what has Yahoo and Apple got to do with Whatsapp which is owned by Meta Group (Facebook)? Followed by a third question on where was Google in all this when you consider Yahoo, Apple and Facebook have been mentioned.
Interesting or puzzling or both?
This post hopes to cover two things. The first is about the WhatsApp phenomenon. The second is the role of private individuals and not corporations when it comes to vision and game changers.
WhatsApp’s reach
Let me start with the WhatsApp paradigm and phenomenon first. As I write this, WhatsApp has over 2 billion users and is the most popular app in 100 countries. It is available in 180 countries and in 60 languages. And each day 100 billion messages are sent.
China with the largest population in the World has blocked WhatsApp like they have done with other foreign social media apps.
A reasonable guess would suggest that Chinese locals would readily hook-up to WhatsApp in their millions without the ban. Considering the appeal for western icons like wine, luxury goods, Ivy League education and brand names their locals have. Plus to reach out to those who are outside their borders and they want to get in touch with.
Excluding China, 69% of internet users in the World use WhatsApp.
Knowing the scale, reach and influence of WhatsApp, the only blemish is that it is owned by Facebook. The saving grace is that it was not conceived nor developed by Facebook. And no other big firm or conglomerate was behind the genesis of WhatsApp.
WhatsApp to an individual
The first thing I realised is that the voice phone both fixed line and mobile via my telco is hardly ever used. We stopped using our fixed line even though it is there.
There have been the odd months where no mobile phone call was made or received. There was no need as WhatsApp took over the medium of communication.
The preference became clear. Text messaging, voice and video and in that order.
Pluses
The non-intrusive manner that a message can be sent and received. Tending to messages at my convenience became apparent. I also felt good sending messages knowing that I would not disrupt the recipients’ privacy or space in the manner a phone call does. They too can read the message at their convenience.
Secondly I can also see if the message has been successfully sent and read. And this made the difference when compared to SMS, the stronghold of telcos. And remember SMS was out there for years but in most cases there were charges for it separately or with a phone bundle package with limits. Despite being text messaging, SMS never caught on.
Despite email and messaging platform coming out decades before WhatApp, they did not replace voice calls. WhatsApp did. It is the paradigm shift and a phenomenon.
Providing location with a map is another feature that is hard to beat. Whether it is for a meet-up or waiting for a delivery, its easy and good.
Origins of WhatsApp
WhatsApp was conceived by 2 ex Yahoo staff that decided to take a break and travel. When it was time for Jan Koum and Brian Action to replenish their savings and to draw an income, they decided to develop and monetise an app on the few months old Apple App Store.
Apple App Store was launched in July 2008. Koum and Acton wanted to create an app, load it on to the Apple App Store and charge a fee for its use. Apple always gave a lift expected or unexpected on its platform and this is one instance.
It was not intended for messaging but more to check the status of iPhone users – available, busy, at work etc. It did not work as expected until Apple launched push notifications which allowed them to tweak the original.
This led to the accidental finding of its use as a messaging platform. When you sent the latest status update you could also send a message. The message became the attraction and not the status update. An accident.
WhatsApp entered the Apple App store in November 2009. There was only the iOS version, the other platforms came later with its increased popularity. Its take-up without publicity was phenomenal. Its value spread like wildfire.
Facebook acquires WhatsApp
Facebook came along in 2014 and bought it for a record USD19 billion. So much for travelling on savings for 2 ex-colleagues from Yahoo.
After the first prototype, initial seed funding came from 5 Yahoo ex-colleagues. So there you have it – Yahoo, Apple and Facebook in the mix to its origin. Small world.
2 private individuals on their own time and with their own money kick-started an idea. From conception to a full working app. And like so many inventions in our modern era of technology, it involved private individuals with a vision.
I am going to leave the rest to Wikipedia on its formation and the players behind it and its eventual rise to World domination and its impact on so many people’s daily lives.
WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal and others
They all fall under the mobile instant messaging (IM) genre. In essence a phone based technology.
Blackberry Messenger was the first in 2005 and WhatsApp came along in 2009. Prior to this instant messaging was confined to PCs with Skype being more prominent.
There are now 10 to 12 Mobile IM apps that have over 100 million users each.
One interesting aspect of mobile messaging apps is the part played by geography. And its an interesting revelation but sometimes there are no discernible answers to it.
Geography
Line is the most popular IM app in Japan, Taiwan and Thailand. The penetration rate for Thailand is higher than than 85%. Malaysia which shares a common border with Thailand, and Indonesia which is another neighbour both have similar rates but for WhatsApp. Cambodia leads with Telegram while its Zalo for Vietnam and they are all South East Asia countries. What does one make of it?
Back to Thailand which has no historical link to Japan or Taiwan. So what led to Line having such a high penetration rate? Europe has a similar story with no clear relationships on the popularity of a particular app. My guess is that people are agnostic and download the first app that their friends had. And your friends and close ones are certainly from your own country. So it looks like first mover advantage played a part.
It should be noted that both founders left WhatsApp and Meta (Facebook) on seemingly ethical grounds and good for them. Brian Acton now leads the not-for-profit IM, Signal. It is the IM of choice for journalist, diplomats and those who do not want their sources identified or communication and data read or used for other reasons. Signal as matter of stated policy does not use any personal data of its users except for the phone number.
My sense is that World has become a better place with the coming of WhatsApp and providing the pathway to other IM apps. And I think we owe it to Jan Koum and Brian Acton for it.