Even though it has signed up over 100 million users since its 2011 launch, Samsung’s free messaging app ChatOn has failed to catch on around the globe. As a result, the company is shutting down the service on February 1, 2015, worldwide but not in the US, reports Engadget.
Samsung told South Korean media outlet Yonhap News that the move is a reaction to “changing demands in the market,” and that the company will focus on health and mobile commerce instead.
A recent survey showed that users spent only six seconds per month on ChatOn, as opposed to 11 hours on Facebook and over an hour on Instagram. That might be due to the popularity of rival messaging apps like WeChat, Line, and WhatsApp around the world, which dominate mobile messaging activity in various markets.
With usage stats like that, it certainly doesn’t make sense to keep ChatOn alive for much longer. Samsung has said that it will allow users to save their chat records, photos and videos shared via app before it is shut down.
➤ Samsung’s ChatOn service will shut down next year — but not in the US [Engadget via TechInAsia]
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