Facebook allows users to customize their virtual look
Facebook has launched the Avatar feature in India. This feature allows the user to customize their own virtual look. Which can be shared as a sticker in chat and comments. The company said that the Avatar feature supports a variety of faces, hairstyles and outfits.
Facebook said on Tuesday that it launched Avatar in India as the nationwide lockdown shifted to the Internet for social interaction. India is also the second largest internet market in the world.
The company launched India at a time when anti-China sentiment is at its peak in the country. The Indian government recently banned 59 Chinese apps. There were also many such apps in it.
In the third largest economy market of the world, Facebook has been given a tough competition. Facebook’s avatar is also seen as a clone of Snapchat’s popular Bitmoji, which was launched last year. The company says that it will also help in increasing social engagement.
Avatar was first launched in Australia and New Zealand
Users can create their avatar from the sticker tray in the news feed post or the comment section of the messenger. Facebook first released it to users in Australia and New Zealand. After which it was launched in Europe and America.
About 147 million users of Snapchat create their own Bitmojis
Several companies, including Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi, have tried to replicate Bitmoji in recent years – though none has expanded it like Snapchat. Earlier this year, Snapchat introduced Bitmoji TV. It is a four-minute comedy cartoon series with the user’s avatar. Snapchat at the time stated that around 70% of its daily active users, or 14.7 crore out of its 21 million users, had created their own Bitmojis.
Snapchat will launch smart sunglasses in India
Snapchat is also preparing to launch its Smart Glasses Spartacles in India. The California based company said it has struggled a lot to make a place in India. According to mobile insight firm App Annie, the company had around 30 million monthly active users last month. Facebook has more than 35 crore users in India and WhatsApp has 400 million users.
