Indians are obsessed with this Chinese selfie app that makes them look fair and lovely

[endyashainin]

http://qz.com/861829/indians-are-ob...fie-app-that-makes-them-look-fair-and-lovely/

Indians are obsessed with this Chinese selfie app that makes them look fair and lovely
Written by
Suneera Tandon
VIRTUAL MAKE-UP

Let me take a selfie first. (Reuters/Rupak De Chowdhuri)

Chinese selfie app maker Meitu is taking over smartphones in India. So much so, that India now has the second-highest number of users for the app outside of China.

In 2016, its selfie-enhancement app, BeautyPlus Me (designed specifically for India), topped Google Play’s trending list for the country.

Since its launch in 2008, Meitu, a mobile internet company that enables photo and video editing on smartphones, has been a rage in China. Its apps, such as BeautyPlus and MakeupPlus, have been installed in over a billion devices globally, helping users take selfies, beautify them via makeup filters, and share them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. These apps process close to 6 billion pictures every month.

After taking over China, Meitu is now wooing users in the world’s second-largest and fastest-growing smartphone market. Besides a booming mobile phone market, its young population makes India a desirable geography for Meitu, which counts users aged between 18 and 35 as its core audience.

Selfie love
Selfie-obsessed India—in 2015 the country reported the highest selfie-related deaths in the world—is fertile ground for Meitu.

While the company refused to share specific numbers for its BeautyPlus Me app, Google Playstore shows a million downloads in India since it was first launched in July. The total number of unique device installations in India, according to the company, has grown by 165% over the last year.

Earlier this year, Meitu firmed up plans to open an India office, roping in former Micromax employee Ravish Jain as country manager. “India is a goldmine for any app company right now,” said Jain explaining the company’s interest.

To push its presence in a country still struggling with slow internet speed, the company launched a lite version of BeautyPlus, called BeautyPlus Me, in July. This 10 MB app is available only in India.

Jain added that Meitu modifies its app in most markets to adapt to cultural preferences towards beauty. In India, for instance, looking light-skinned and blemish-free is often related to better marriage and job prospects.

The apps provide tools such as whitening skin complexion, erasing blemishes, teeth whitening, and brightening of eyes.

BeautyPlus Me is also available in 12 Indian languages.

Betting big
The Xiamen-based company that is due to raise $700 million in a stock listing in Hong Kong, has ambitious plans for India.

It has tied up with local handset makers such as Micromax and Lava to pre-load its apps on their devices and will soon feature branded beauty tutorials on its app. It also has plans to rope in local celebrities and fashion brands to promote the app.

“We want to add a big smartphone user base in India,” Jain added. One selfie at a time.

 

[SQ8]

While I will argue that not all Indians are obsessed with fair skin, they are mostly self obsessed as long as they are raised in India.

 

[xyxmt]

I thought Chinese were good business people but I am really disappointed, they came up with the best business idea but execution is very poor, they could have sold this app for $500 and half of India would have bought it

 

[Soumitra]

I thought Chinese were good business people but I am really disappointed, they came up with the best business idea but execution is very poor, they could have sold this app for $500 and half of India would have bought it

$500 is very cheap. Such an essential app. You sell it t $1000 and still you will get 1 million downloads.

See I have given you a free idea for a billion dollar business

 

[AndrewJin]

I thought Chinese were good business people but I am really disappointed, they came up with the best business idea but execution is very poor, they could have sold this app for $500 and half of India would have bought it

I don't think the shining middle class from supa powa have that purchasing power
$500 could be their 3 months' salary for MBA graduates....

 

[G0dfather]

India now has the second-highest number of users for the app outside of China.

This means that Chinese are more obsessed as compared to Indians with the selfie app that makes them look fair and lovely.

 

[SQ8]

This means that Chinese are more obsessed as compared to Indians with the selfie app that makes them look fair and lovely.

Depends if fair and lovely are the feautures they use most often. The app also has blemish and sculpting features that give the user clearer spot free skin. May not necessarily be used for fairness which is a subcontinent obsession after being ruled and raped by the British in the most brutal way possible both physically and mentally.

 

[Soumitra]

Depends if fair and lovely are the feautures they use most often. The app also has blemish and sculpting features that give the user clearer spot free skin. May not necessarily be used for fairness which is a subcontinent obsession after being ruled and raped by the British in the most brutal way possible both physically and mentally.

So how do you know which features are being used by Indians and which by chinese?

 

[xyxmt]

I don't think the shining middle class from supa powa have that purchasing power
$500 could be their 3 months' salary for MBA graduates....

but you under estimate the power of whiter skin in India

 

[G0dfather]

fairness which is a subcontinent obsession

+1

Depends if fair and lovely are the feautures they use most often. The app also has blemish and sculpting features that give the user clearer spot free skin. May not necessarily be used for fairness

Exactly, simply using a app doesn't mean that people are using it to look fair.

 

[kingofkings]

While I will argue that not all Indians are obsessed with fair skin, they are mostly self obsessed as long as they are raised in India.

I agree .... While I will argue that not all ppl from certain country are obsessed with terrorism, they are mostly self obsessed as long as they are raised in that perticular country.

 

[Djinn]

Does it create difference like this?

BTW Bharteez don't feel hurt by this, I don't like mocking faces, just sharing for a reference to obsessions in the sub-continent.

 

[EAK]

I agree .... While I will argue that not all ppl from certain country are obsessed with terrorism, they are mostly self obsessed as long as they are raised in that perticular country.

Or you could change word terrorism with rape & particular country,, and have a new meaning so you don't have to even argue..

 

[SBUS-CXK]

Does it create difference like this?

BTW Bharteez don't feel hurt by this, I don't like mocking faces, just sharing for a reference to obsessions in the sub-continent.

Four Asian magic!
Upward 1, China photo repair technology.
Upward 2, Korean cosmetic surgery.
downward 1, Thailand degeneration surgery
downward 2, Japan makeup magic.

 

[xyxmt]

$500 is very cheap. Such an essential app. You sell it t $1000 and still you will get 1 million downloads.

See I have given you a free idea for a billion dollar business

thanks but that is a lot of work, i will rather put some off the self cream in a new packing and name it something like whitey white cream and charge triple the price. If out of one billion even if one percent try it i will match Bill gates fortunes.