Emerging markets are the target of Nokia’s popular Asha phone range, which is among the properties being acquired by Microsoft. It’s essential that developers wanting to break into these markets expand to the platform, which is precisely what Viber has done.
Viber looks to boost its user base and compete head-to-head with WhatsApp.
Viber, which has more than 200 million users, is now available for the Nokia Asha 308, 310 and 311, and the messaging company hopes to boost its user base beyond the more than 200 million it already boasts as it looks to compete head-on with WhatsApp’s 350 million count.
Viber allows users to make voice calls, send messages, conduct group conversations and share photos over mobile broadband or Wi-Fi. The app also offers contact sync, push-to-talk functionality and a sticker store, which were recently added to the platform in order to help the company looks monetize its service more effectively.
WhatsApp Messenger is due to become available for the Asha range of devices, starting with the Asha 501 this month. The app is already built into the Asha 210 with a dedicated WhatsApp key and was previously seen in a leak running on the Asha 500. WeChat is also available for the platform.
Photo: Nokia Conversations