Hike messenger, India’s only homegrown chat application, announced the launch of free stickers in Indian languages. The new sticker packs allow hike users to communicate in their own language thereby facilitating better expression. The sticker range consists of over 250 Indian stickers catering to different parts of India. From colloquial expressions to playful slangs, the complete set adds emotions to conversations, with a single tap on the smartphone.
Hike also announced the launch of Sticker Shop to provide customizable user experience with easy reordering of the desired packs. The feature is designed keeping in mind the cultural differences and the regional colloquial flavor across the markets of northern, eastern, western, southern and central India. Special regional packs have been launched for the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Punjab and Delhi.
Kavin Bharti Mittal, Founder & CEO, Hike Messenger said, “We want to offer our users the freedom to express. Of the 10 billion plus monthly messaging volume, stickers contribute to 30 per cent of the traffic, accounting for 3 billion sticker shares – and this number is growing day by day. We truly believe India is a country of many countries – we stand united in our diversity. Hike is made in India and thus this offering follows naturally; we’re localizing hike even further for the market by launching over 250 stickers in multiple languages catering to 11 distinct regions. It’s been a big request from our 35M+ users to and we can’t wait to see the response.”
Hike’s features have a local flavor since they have been developed taking into account the cultural diversity and unique demands of the Indian youth. This has been enabled by way Hike works really closely with its users, wherein product features and stickers are co-created with its users through an open channel of regular feedback and suggestions.
Hike is available globally on iOS, Android, WP, Blackberry, BB10, S40, S60; and is made with love in India.
Additional information:
• You can download the app at – http://get.hike.in/
• Visit our blog for more details on the new features – http://hike.in/blog/
Hike’s Journey:
• Dec, 2012: Global launch
• Feb 2013: Messaging traffic grows 10X week on week
• April 2013: Hits the first 5M user milestone in just 4 months of its launch | Raised $7M from BSB
• June 2013: Stickers are on hike!
• Aug 2013: Digital ad campaign goes live
• Nov 2013: Co-creation exercise with users – including real-time feedback from the users for product development
• Dec 2013: Hike turns 1 year old! Launches two-way Chat Themes
• Feb 2014: Hit the 15M user mark
• April 2014: Receives $14M fresh funding from BSB
• June 2014: Crossed 20M user mark, launched TVC
• July 2014: Hit #1 rank on App stores
• August 2014: Crosses 35M user mark, receives $65M fresh funding led by Tiger Global
• November 2014: Regional stickers on hike!
