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Yet another big messaging app maker, Line (owned by the South Korean Naver Corporation), is attempting an IPO:
There's a chance you might not have heard of Line but the Japanese messaging service is set to sell shares for the first time in an initial public offering (IPO) in both New York and Tokyo.
[...] Line is the most popular messaging app in Japan, Thailand and Taiwan. It is similar to the likes of Whatsapp, Facebook Messenger or WeChat in China. While it is close to those, it does have some features that set it apart: virtual stickers, cartoon-like animated emojis and games with mascots such as a bear called Brown and his rabbit friend Cony. You can make video calls, stream video or order taxis with it. It also offers a timeline much like Facebook does. Line has about 218 million monthly active users and makes its money from advertising and selling its virtual stickers and games.
[...] The company is set to raise up to $1.3bn (£1bn) when it lists its shares, after setting its flotation price at 3,300 yen ($33; £25) per share. It's being described as Japan's biggest tech IPO of the year but in fact it could have been significantly bigger. When Line was scheduled for an initial public offering two years ago, there was talk of a valuation of more than $10bn. But that was at a time when the user base was still growing at record pace, and those days are over.
The major revenue for the company? Selling sets of branded "stickers" (basically larger and more complicated emoji) to use in chat.
The company raised over $1 billion and was ultimately valued at $8.6 billion by the market. It was the best week for the Nikkei stock exchange since 2009.
(Score: 3, Informative) by willie3204 on Monday July 18 2016, @12:50PM
I live in Japan. This is the primary communication tool which everyone uses. People eat up those 'stickers' and new ones are coming out all the time. The company is also expanding the tool into all sorts of other areas such as music streaming and secondary markets.
I bought the stock. I expect it to do well long term. The Japanese do not drop an established standard so quickly.
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Monday July 18 2016, @02:53PM
Ah, that explains the thing in ReLIFE.
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(Score: 2) by takyon on Monday July 18 2016, @03:05PM
Fucking lol.
Yup, that's where I know Line from.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Monday July 18 2016, @04:16PM
The question is not whether they'll keep using the line "convenience" features, but whether they'll eventually get over the animated emojis... The fact that they renew them often is good, but eventually all novelty wears off.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Monday July 18 2016, @04:21PM
That's where stuffing it with everything including the kitchen sink comes in. Looks like that includes payment processing and music streaming at least. The Wikipedia article mentions Line Taxi, an Uber clone.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]