www.AndroidNova.org

Facebook messenger app for Android will now allow users in India to log in with just their name and mobile number,yeah its true and ,they have implemented this functionality to attract users ,like Whatsapp messenger did previously.

Before, to log in to Facebook Messenger, users had to sign in using their FB account ,now this task can be accomplished without the users FB account i.e phone number substitute method is being used.

The new update for the app is an insanely great move by Facebook:

1)Android:  The update is  only available for Android phones, is a  well planned move to first utilize a large and growing, emerging market. Note that the update is only available in India, Indonesia, Venezuela, Australia and South Africa and will be launched in the US and Europe later.

As far as India is concerned, Android has a clear lead in the smartphone market. According to this Wall Street Journal, report Apple sold only 100,000 phones in India in the first six months of 2012 and Apple’s market share of handsets in India is 1.2%, according to research firm IDC.

And the Android story doesn’t just end with India. According to IDC’s most recent numbers, Android has 68.3% of market share for 2012. The report also goes on to say that,

“The high price point of the iPhone relative to other smartphones will make it cost prohibitive for some users within many emerging markets. In order to maintain current growth rates, Apple will need to examine the possibility of offering less expensive models, similar to its iPod line. Until that happens, IDC forecasts iOS to ship lower volumes than Android.”

So ,as far as Android is concerned show that Facebook is right about tapping into Android users because they make the majority.

2) Facebook brand: The Messenger app now requires just your name and your mobile number. Facebook might have one billion users but it has no intention of stopping there.

In terms of numbers, India is one of Facebook’s largest growing markets and there are currently 60 million Indians on Facebook. That’s about half of India’s active Internet population (which is currently at around 137 million and growing).

China might have over 500 million Internet users, but until the great firewall of China comes down, India is one of the best bets for Facebook as far as growing users are concerned.

ComScore data shows social networking accounted for 25.2 percent of all time-spent online in June 2012 as far as Indians are concerned. Facebook is also the second most popular site accessed after Google, according to the research.

The updated Messenger app means Facebook wants users in India and other upcoming markets to go beyond social networking, and into messaging but via their app.

By asking users to sign into the app with only names and mobile numbers, Facebook is looking for more potential users of their services,we fell Facebook is diversifying its business itself like Google did earlier,from being labelled as just a search company Google has intruded every walks of human life.Such same steps is followed by Facebook.

Rivalry with WhatsApp: WhatsApp is currently the Number One Top free app on Android and it’s evident for Facebook this is the biggest enemy. WhatsApp is free for the first year but users need to pay a dollar for the next year.

However the advantage that Facebook’s Messenger has over Whatsapp is that it’s free. And like WhatsApp it allows users to send Photos. It does not  allow users to send photos yet. Once it does, it could have a significant edge, give that the Facebook brand is so large and growing all the time.

Mobile is where Facebook is placing all its bets for the future and the Messenger upgrade is part of this strategy.looks like the dog-feeding strategy by FB might works wonders for the Social network.