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Pretty much everyone in Korea owns a smartphone so the results of this study won't surprise
most people but.... more instant messages are now sent through chat apps, such as KaKaoTalk,
than through regular SMS text messages.
One chat app is hoping to challenge KakaoTalk's domestic dominance... and its called LINE.
Connie Lee reports. Sending quick messages, pictures, videos... or even making international
phone calls for FREE is all possible with chat apps on smartphones.
And one app that is making new headways... is Korea's own LINE messenger.
The company recently announced that it hit the 200-million download mark--- a first for
a domestic chat app company.
LINE,... by Korea's NHN Corporation, is fairly new in the chat app field... having launched
in June of 2011-- But it looks like it is quickly growing-- it now has double the number
of users than its rival KaKaoTalk, which was launched in March 2010.
Just this year alone... the number of LINE users has been growing by the tens of millions,
already at 100 million downloads in January.
The app stands in the top spot in APPS STORES not only in Southeast Asian countries, but
also in South America and Europe.
LINE, although from a domestic firm, has its main office in Japan... with most of its users
also there.
In its efforts to expand globally, LINE officials say they have localized content to meet the
wants and needs of the different nations.
Connie Lee, Arirang News.