Report: Usage of Asian messaging apps in Russia rises 60 percent

Moscow (ANTARA) - According to a Kommersant report on Monday, the number of users of Asian messaging apps in Russia increased by 60 percent in March amid a slowdown in activity on Telegram. Among the Asian platforms, China’s WeChat, South Korea’s KakaoTalk, and Turkey’s BiP recorded the strongest growth in popularity among Russian users, according to the report citing data from telecommunications operator MTS. WeChat’s user base in Russia specifically experienced very rapid expansion at the beginning of this year, with daily activity increasing by 67 percent from January to February, according to the report. “The growth of Asian messaging apps is driven by minimalistic interfaces, low data consumption, and integrated content-sharing features,” said Ivan Goryachev, project manager for education at Servicepipe. Alexey Kozlov, chief analyst at the Spikatel cyber threat monitoring centre, said WeChat is attractive to Russian users because it integrates payments, social networking features, and mini-apps into one platform. However, he added that many functions are still limited without a Chinese phone number or verification from users in China.