PhonePe, a prominent fintech firm owned by Walmart, recently introduced its new Android-based mobile app marketplace called the Indus Appstore in India. This new app store aims to address the issue of regional language content availability in existing marketplaces. The Indus Appstore offers support for English as well as 12 Indian regional languages, making it more accessible and inclusive for users across the country.
One of the key features of the Indus Appstore is its video-led app discovery, which helps users explore and discover new apps through engaging visual content. The app store also offers mobile-based logins for user convenience and AI-driven app recommendations to personalize the user experience. Additionally, the platform supports languages such as Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Punjabi, and Tamil, among others, catering to a wide range of users.
At its launch, the Indus Appstore boasts a collection of 200,000 apps, including popular ones like Flipkart, Disney+ Hotstar, Myntra, Zomato, Swiggy, and Snapchat. The platform also features a diverse range of games, with a focus on casual gaming, heavy gaming, and real money gaming (RMG). Developers can list their apps on the platform for free during the first year, after which an annual fee will be charged. Moreover, the marketplace does not impose any platform fee or commission for in-app payments if developers choose to integrate separate payment gateways, distinguishing it from competitors like Apple and Google.
The Indus Appstore offers a seamless user experience by enabling mobile number and OTP-based logins in place of traditional email registrations. The platform leverages AI algorithms and location data to provide tailored app recommendations to users. It also introduces smart features like smart updates for faster app upgrades and personalised storage management to recommend hibernating or deleting rarely used apps. App developers have the flexibility to choose whether or not to display ads in their apps, with the option to earn a commission from generated ad revenue.
PhonePe’s launch of the Indus Appstore marks a significant development in the Indian app ecosystem, offering a diverse selection of apps in multiple languages and innovative features for enhanced user engagement. With its focus on inclusivity, user experience, and developer-friendly policies, the Indus Appstore is poised to become a key player in the mobile app marketplace in India.
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