Archive for March 2014

Mobile browser UC Browser crosses milestone: 500 million users

Posted on March 26, 2014 by

UCbrowserpageOne of the world’s leading 3rd party mobile browser, UCWeb Inc.’s UC Browser has blown past 1 more milestone – 500 million users.

UC Browser is the company’s flagship product, & is currently used in 11 languages in more than 150 countries & regions around the world.

To celebrate its latest milestone, UC Browser has launched a new brand mascot redesigned to better embody the faster and smarter web experience UC Browser delivers to its users.

The mobile browser is compatible with more than 3,000 different mobile device models produced by more than 200 manufacturers. A full 300 million of the browser’s users have Android-powered devices.

That sounds very diverse & wide-spread, but their main growth markets are still China & India. UC Browser dominates the Chinese market with a 65% market share, based on data about active iOS & Android users provided by iResearch.

In India, UC Browser has a 32% market share of the mobile browser category, as per data from StatCounter.

Percentages don’t really capture the magnitude of the volume, but these numbers will – a full 80 per cent of China’s 618 million Internet users are on mobile, & the number of users in India accessing mobile Internet will soon hit 185 million.

Fueled by this success in the 2 countries with the world’s largest populations & immense capacity for further growth, UCWeb is flexing its muscles & dipping its toes into the rest of the world.

UC Browser is now a growing force in the U.S., Russia, Indonesia, Vietnam & some of the key growth markets in the world where it already has gained a critical mass of more than 10% of the mobile browser market.

They’re also moving past being a simple browsing tool, & creating a platform that pipes content & services customized as per the needs of the local market.

For instance, their new train enquiry service in India allows UC Browser users to get instant information & updates on train status & ticket confirmations. UC Browser is now at the core of a large & growing ecosystem of more than 5,000 partners, including merchants, Online service providers, & app & game developers.

A good example of this partnership is the Cricbuzz add-on for UC Browser, which allows Cricbuzz.com to stay connected with their existing user base on UC Browser, & attract new users from the large sea of browser users who may find the add-on & start using it.

Guangzhou, China-based UCWeb Inc. was founded in 2004, & now also has offices in Beijing, Gurgaon (Haryana, India) & San Francisco. The company’s investors include the Alibaba Group, Ceyuan Ventures, GGV Capital, Nokia Growth Partners, Morningside Ventures & Mr. Lei Jun.

Image Credit: UC Browser

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Sortie: Fresh go at location sharing social networking

Posted on March 25, 2014 by

sortiepageWhen location-based social networking Site Foursquare was launched everyone started with the ‘check-Ins’ at cafés, restaurants & at concerts. When Foursquare was integrated with social “biggie” Facebook we saw the check-ins shifting to Walls & Timelines. Same goes for photo sharing app Instragram, what with the selfies at Starbucks, & so on. Basically, check-ins’ everywhere. Somewhere between Foursquare & Instagram, though, they seem to have lost some steam.

Now, an app called Sortie claims it’s about to change all that. Sortie is an engaging & entertaining social share app that uses interactive tasks assigned to users which they have to complete by using the check-ins feature.

Sortie allows users to engage & discover new places in the form of “missions”. For example, the app asks the user to “Take a picture in front of Times Square, New York” or “Try the coffee at Brown Beans Café on Kingston Street.” These tasks are presented in the form of missions based on the user’s preferences.

This unique way brings new meaning to the line, “Explore your city in a new way.” Users can find specific lists based on their interests like food, shopping or sightseeing. Another unique feature is that the user can create his own list or his own mission. A user can also create a list for his friends & share it on other social networking sites.

Sortie has a deeper user engagement where once you check-in to a place, the app suggests another location or task. This way, the user gets to explore more places around him/her. This keeps things interesting. Currently, Sortie is about to be launched & if you want it, you need to go to the Site & sign up. As of now, Sortie seems to be available only on the iOS platform.

Sortie is founded by New Yorker Brad Zellman.

Image Credit: Sortie

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