Facebook has launched its Messenger Lite app, aimed at “markets with slower than average internet speeds and a prevalence of basic Android smartphones”.
The initial roll-out will see the app launch in Kenya, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Tunisia and Venezuela, with new markets following “in the coming months”.
The low-spec version of the social media firm’s messaging app is under 10MB in size, meaning that it installs and boots up quickly. It includes fundamental features of Facebook’s standard Messenger app, such as sending and receiving photos and links.
According to Facebook’s data, around 1 billion people use the Messenger app every month. Facebook aims to increase this number by extending the service to customers “regardless of network conditions or storage limitations on their Android devices”.
Facebook has already launched a Lite version of its original mobile app. Aimed at emerging markets due to the limitations of both devices and networks associated with these regions, Facebook Lite accrued over 100 million users around nine months after it launched. The app was particularly popular in Brazil, India, Indonesia, Mexico and the Philippines.
