The world’s favourite social micro-blogging site, Twitter, is working with a Singapore-based startup to make its 140-character messaging service available to users in emerging markets.
U2opia Mobile, a global provider of mobile applications that enable ubiquitous and customised access to the social internet, is bringing Twitter to citizens of the world still using entry-level mobile phones such as the Nokia 3310.
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Images and videos won’t be displayed, but with U2opia’s Fonetwish service, users need only dial a special code and a feed of trending tweets and topics will be sent to their phone.
According to U2opia, eight out of 10 people in the emerging markets aren’t able to access data on their phone. More than 11 million are already using the Fonetwish service, which helps them access Facebook and Google Talk without a data connection. The Singaporean company has also revealed that to date, over half a million users without internet access around the world are visiting Facebook every month.
U2opia Mobile, which is currently already working with Facebook Inc. will launch its Twitter service in the first quarter of next year, Chief Executive and Co-founder Sumesh Menon told Reuters. U2opia, which is present in 30 countries in seven international languages, will localise the Twitter feed according to the location of the user.
“So somebody in Paraguay would definitely get content that would be very very localised to that market vis a vis somebody sitting in Mumbai or Bangalore. For a lot of end users in the emerging markets, it’s going to be their first Twitter experience,” Menon said.
Original story by: Vulcan Post
