Not content with spinning out apps for stickers
inside Messenger , Groups and new addition
Rooms , Facebook has launched another
standalone app. Facebook Lite , which some may
recall as a simplified version of its mobile
website from 2009-2010, is specifically designed
for low-end Android devices in emerging markets.
TechCrunch understands that the app was quietly
launched in a handful of countries in Asia and
Africa over the weekend — Bangladesh, Nepal,
Nigeria, South Africa, Sudan, Sri Lanka,
Vietnam and Zimbabwe to be precise — where it is
being testing with a view to further expansions.
That said, a wider launch is not a certainty and
Facebook could quietly can the project if it doesn’t
believe it is worth pursuing.
The app has been built to accommodate low-end
and dated Android devices — it is just 252 KB in
size — and those on 2G/poor quality internet
connections. It’s based on Snaptu, Facebook’s
feature phone client, but includes some native
Android features, such as push notifications and
camera integration, to make the experience a
more sophisticated one.
Why is Facebook launching yet another app?
Smartphone sales are soaring in India, which was
the fastest growing market in Asia Pacific in Q3
2014, while there’s huge potential in Africa and
Southeast Asia where mobile will be (or already
is) the primary internet platform for millions. Even
though Facebook retooled its Android app
specifically for emerging markets last year, it is
making sure that it offers a good experience to
any user not matter their device or network
connection. (Android is the platform of choice for
most smartphone owners in emerging markets
since devices can cost upwards of $30.)
Facebook already has its Internet.org project,
which provides free access to a range of mobile
internet services including, of course, Facebook.
Internet.org is currently limited to a selection of
countries in Africa at this point and, since it is
being developed in partnership with carriers and
other telecom industry players , launches are time
and resource intensive: so why not pull together a
‘Lite’ app that can potentially be pushed to
millions overnight, that’s Facebook’s thinking
here.
If you’re in one of the aforementioned eight
countries where Facebook Lite has launched —
and you have an Android phone — then you can
check it out here .
The early signs seem positive. The app has
already crossed 10,000 downloads at the time of
writing, with a 4.6 rating from an initial 693
reviewers. The few early users tweeting about it
seem impressed too
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