SMS GupShup touches 35 Million users mark
By siliconindia   |   Thursday, 02 September 2010, 18:11 IST
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Mumbai: SMS GupShup, a mobile social network, has crossed the 35 million users mark in India. At a time, when networks like Orkut, Facebook and Twitter are ruling the roost, SMS GupShup is giving stiff competition to the networking giants. In fact, SMS GupShup's user base surpasses the user base of other networks. What has helped popularize SMS GupShup in India is the growing number of mobile phones. The mobile to PC ratio in India is 10:1. So this makes SMS the most pervasive form of communication. SMS GupShup has a wide range of audience, from sports fans, religious groups to commuters, interested in latest traffic alerts. The number of groups on the network is over 3.5 million. This has paved way for an increase in publishers and advertisers using the platform. Among the prime advertisers on the community include Microsoft, eBay, Nokia, Pepsi and others. Brands can run SMS ads and create branded communities, very similar to fan sites that appear on traditional web-based social networks. The mobile social network is planning to expand its territory and is foraying into Philippines, which is often attributed as the texting capital of the world. Social SMS is expected to grow in coming years and will allow people to keep in touch with friends and family despite the absence of internet. Not only that, the opportunities for brands, businesses and carriers will also multiply both in the form of content and advertising in these kind of networks. Beerud Sheth, CEO, SMS GupShup says, "As we expand into new territories, we remain confident that our service will be helpful, fun, and interesting to a wide variety of users. We can see through our users in India that people of all ages and backgrounds are looking to engage via mobile, and we will continue to offer an outstanding platform to communicate on."

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