Viber free download has been offering users with free instant messaging, as well as voice and video calling since 2010.
This application has gained recent popularity with its high quality messaging services that include a wide collection of stickers, which is the common trend for communication by the younger generation.
Viber has more than 460 million users across the globe and as it stands, this application is only second to Skype as far as the popularity of VoIP apps is concerned. However, this is going to change in the near future following the introduction of WhatsApp voice calls, considering the fact that WhatsApp is the leading provider of instant messaging services, basing on the available figures.
Viber has been beta testing games services in five countries
Viber is aware of the tough competition that is not just coming from WhatsApp, but also from other already existing players in the industry that include Skype, Line, Tango and WeChat. These applications also offer users with the same instant messaging as well as voice and video calling services. In a bid to diversify its user base, Viber has moved a step further by introducing the gaming feature into its platform.
As noted above, competition in the VoIP industry has never been stiffer as it is. Viber happens not to be the only app offering games for its users. In fact, this instant messaging and VoIP app is just joining the party that has already been dominated by Line and WeChat. These two apps already saw the advantage of removing the monotony of just having calls on a mobile phone app and included an additional entertainment feature where users can go against each other in a game while chatting.
This gaming service has been launched quietly by Viber and it is now available to the whole world after first appearing in five countries as of December 2014. These countries include Israel, which is the mother country of the app, Belarus, Singapore, Malaysia as well as the Ukraine. The currently available titles are Wildluck Casino, Viber Candy Mania and Viber Pop. When any of these links are followed within Viber, users of this app can battle, share their scores and generally interact with each other using this service.
In essence, what is behind the introduction of games on Viber is basically to increase user engagement and most importantly, this is a source of income for the app, as users will have to make some in-app purchases.
Improvements to follow the official release
As noted above, Viber had rolled out the feature in five countries mainly for testing purposes. The official release of the Viber games means that the developers of the app are pleased with the performance of the app and games.
However, just like with any other new software application; getting to the stable version after the initial launching takes some time. As the updates and fixes to the potential bugs that may affect the Viber games are rolled out, more titles will also be included in the application so that users have a wide collection of games to play.
Viber to monetize games service
Many of Viber’s competitors who are offering the gaming service use it as their only means of monetizing the application. In-app purchases in these games make it even better for these companies, with players like Line and WeChat already reaping significantly from these services. KakaoTalk, which is a very dominant instant messaging application in Korea, also reaps lots of revenues from in-app purchases for games; however, it has yet to hit its peak on the global market.
Currently, Viber earns its revenue from the selling of stickers and the low-rated calls to non-users of the app. Viber introduced the public chats feature, which might also take the same monetary direction for Viber. One thing that looks very certain is that Viber will definitely introduce commercial services on its platform so as to cater to its ever-growing global population.
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