StarHub and WeChat partner to bring the world of mobile social communications to Singapore’s pre-paid users with the first-ever WeChat plan
Singapore, 19 November 2013 – Social networks and mobile communications are changing the rules of engagement when it comes to connecting with new friends and staying in touch with the people you already know. In response to evolving consumer behaviors and demands, StarHub and WeChat today announced the launch of Singapore’s first WeChat plan, which enables StarHub Mobile pre-paid customers to discover and connect with existing and new friends.
“Technology is changing the way people connect and enabling more dynamic communications that includes multimedia content. At the same time, consumers are demanding more innovative, efficient and social mobile communications that gives them more control over how they share their lives,” said Louis Song, Country Manager for Singapore, International Business Unit at Tencent, the company behind the WeChat app.
“As a trailblazer in the realm of social mobile, WeChat continues to place consumers at the center of everything we do. As a result, WeChat is the only social mobile platform that delivers a completely immersive and holistic social communication experience that allows users to make people and brands a part of their world with a total peace-of-mind, when it comes to privacy and data security. We are thrilled to partner StarHub to make WeChat more accessible to StarHub Mobile pre-paid users in Singapore, as we continue to evolve alongside their needs to stay connected.”
Crossing the 100 million registered international user account milestone in August 2013, WeChat has become the fastest growing mobile social communication application worldwide among teenagers. In a recent blog post[1], GlobalWebIndex reported that WeChat achieved a staggering 1,021% increase in usage among youths aged 16 to 19 worldwide between Q1 and Q3 of 2013.
“WeChat is one of the fastest-growing social communication app in the world, and we are very excited to be the first local mobile operator to partner WeChat to offer our customers a worry-free way to chat with family and friends all over the world,” said Mr Chan Kin Hung, Head of Personal Solutions, StarHub. “Mobile pre-paid users are generally more cost-conscious. With our new peace-of-mind WeChat plan, we will enable our growing base of mobile-savvy customers to stay connected in a fun and affordable way on their smart devices.”
With StarHub’s WeChat plan, StarHub Mobile pre-paid customers can text, send animated stickers and voice messages, chat walkie-talkie style, share and comment on photos, and enjoy many other features, for as low as 40 cents a day or $6 a month[2]. To activate the WeChat plan, customers simply dial *123# on their mobile phone from today.
[1] Information source: GlobalWebIndex (reference web page no longer available)
[2] Fair usage policy of 1GB per day for WeChat data applies.
