Facebook has launched a new standalone app termed ‘Facebook Lite’ — a simplified version of the mobile website for low-end Android devices in emerging markets. The app is not yet available in India.
A report by Tech Crunch states that the app has been built to accommodate low-end and dated Android devices with just 252KB in size. The app will prove beneficial in areas with 2G and poor quality internet connections. Some of the regular features include push notifications and camera integration.
The app could have been quietly launched in a few Asian countries over the weekend which include Bangladesh, Nepal, Nigeria, South Africa, Sudan, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Zimbabwe. There is no certainty on further expansion and the company could cancel the project too if they feel it is not worth chasing.
As smartphone sales are rising by the day in emerging markets, the company wants to offer a flawless experience to users no matter the handset.
Earlier reports suggest that India’s mobile Facebook users will surpass US user-base by 2017. According to a report by market research firm eMarketer, nearly 1 billion users worldwide will access the popular social network through their mobile phones at least once each month in 2015.
Recently, Facebook announced that growing Internet penetration and a large youth population has helped it expand its user base in India to 112 million, which is the largest after the US. Of the 112 million users in India, more than 99 million users are using the platform on their mobile phones at least once a month.
About 45 million users in India are using their mobile phones every day to connect with their friends on Facebook. Globally, the company has 1.35 billion users, while the daily active users are 864 million.