Kik Interactive Inc., a messaging application with 240 million users, is the latest Canadian startup to hit a $1 billion valuation after Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings Ltd. invested $50 million in the company.
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Livingston has previously called his product the “WeChat of the West”, in reference to a popular chat app created by Tencent. The company which has been quite famous among the teenage crowd had been looking for a strategic partner for quite a while and its finally found it.
The company believes that investing in Kik could build its own success in developing chat apps into a platform that brings in nearly everything from e-commerce to banking.
Livingston explained Tencent was the best partner because its messenger service WeChat allows users not merely to connect with friends but also integrates options like shopping, ordering taxis and playing games.
“Young Americans are a large group with unmet needs. As the maker of QQ and WeChat, it was clear they understood chat deeply, making them a great sounding board”, Kik founder and CEO Ted Livingston wrote on Medium. The company concluded its search with Tencent’s investment, Livingston said, noting that the cash infusion isn’t expected to lead to a Tencent acquisition.
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Earlier this year, Kik announced plans to double its Waterloo-based workforce from 65 people to 130. Last week it launched a trial product referred to as Jam to attach customers with their favourite musicians, and gives promoted chats that permit advertisers interact immediately with customers who choose in.
