Viber launched it’s marketplace

Rakuten Viber has announced the launch of its own marketplace right in the app. The new service will appear in a separate “Marketplace” tab and will allow users to find local businesses – from beauty salons and restaurants to medical services and stores – and contact them directly in the chat, without calling or exchanging phone numbers.

In the updated version of the program, the new tab will replace the “Useful” section. Search will be available by name, category or through a selection of recommended offers. The company profile will feature catalogs of goods and services and the ability to instantly communicate with the business without revealing your personal number. If the user provides access to geolocation, the service will automatically show the nearest businesses and update the list when the location changes.

The rollout of the feature will be gradual over several weeks. Connecting to businesses is provided through free profiles. Viber also plans to expand the tools for companies to interact with customers.

The initiative is reminiscent of the strategy of monobank, which began testing its own marketplace almost a year ago and recently launched it under the name monomarket in the bank’s app. However, the service quickly found itself at the center of a conflict: resellers reported pressure from manufacturers Samsung, Asus and Xiaomi, who demanded to remove their products after the launch of the 10% off everything promotion.

Thus, Viber became the second major platform after monobank, which decided to integrate a marketplace into its application. Now the industry is waiting to see which of the technology players will adopt this business model next.