Hike's chief technology officer: 'We're catering to the demands of young India'
India's homegrown messaging platform Hike has introduced five new social features for its Group chat to appeal to youngsters.
Hike recently rolled out an ad campaign entitled #NoFormality to advertise its new features
The new features built inside the chat include Vote, Bill Split, Checklist, Events and card game, Teen Patti. Users can create a poll under the vote option and can divide the bill with the Bill Split feature. They can create a checklist and reminders about the event with checklist and event features respectively.
Hike's chief technology officer, Vishwanath Ramarao, told The Drum: "We are really a consumer led company. When we look at out audience and look at their needs, we are able to solve some of those needs in a unique way. These features are a result of that particular perspective. We have a lot of young India on our platform and they have expressed a desire to see some of the features on the platform and we are giving it to them.
“Our new features will make sharing much easier within the group and raise the fun and productivity quotient. We believe that this could be a key driver for groups to come together and do much more in the online world.:
As to what the way forward is for Hike, he said: "We are constantly innovating as a company. We have released some really cool features out there. We are known for our stickers in India and globally. We constantly continue to push the boundaries of what's possible and making it more fun and social."
Hike faces intense competition from WhatsApp in India. Ramarao, said they company will "continue to build and innovate what's right for our customers in the digital payment space" in the face of this competitor.
Hike recently rolled out an ad campaign entitled #NoFormality to advertise its new features.