Confident of crossing 100M downloads soon, we plan to launch internationally in coming months: Mayank Bhangadia, Roposo

• The recent ban on TikTok has given Indian short video platforms a huge boost.
• Roposo, currently at 75 million downloads, expects to touch 100 million in the next few days, and is setting a plan to enter international markets soon, Mayank Bhangadia, Co-founder-Roposo and VP – Glance tells us.

It’s been about 10 days since the government of India banned 59 Chinese apps including short video platform TikTok citing security concerns. And since then, a lot of Indian players have been seeing a meteoric rise.

TikTok which enjoyed immense popularity in the country had a dedicated audience as well as creator base. With the ban, people are now looking for alternatives and that’s where apps like Roposo, Chingari and Mitron come in. A lot of these apps have seen millions of downloads in the past week and are working tirelessly to strengthen their offering, to make their platforms more attractive to users who at this moment are open to experimentation.

Founded by three IIT Delhi alumni, Mayank Bhangadia, Avinash Saxena and Kaushal Shubhank, Roposo was acquired by Glance in November last year. Currently the platform stands at 75 million downloads on Play Store and is still counting. Some of the other figures are impressive too, and growing everyday. Close to 4 million users are creating around 12 million videos on the platform every day. Moreover, there are close to 2 billion video views on Roposo per day.

We recently caught up with Mayank Bhangadia, Co-founder-Roposo and VP – Glance to understand how things have changed for the platform in the last one week.

Excerpts:

Q) The Tiktok ban has been a blessing for Indian platforms like Roposo. What kind of growth have you seen in the past few weeks?

Roposo has more than 75 million downloads on the Play Store. We have been the number 1 app in the Google Play Store across all categories for the longest period since the ban came into effect. However, Roposo had been growing strongly even before the ban took place. In fact, we were number #1 in the social app category on the Google Play Store for quite some time. And as you can see from the chart below, we were trending across categories from around mid-June. The ban has further boosted the momentum and made us the #1 app on the Play Store.

Q) TikTok had a dedicated audience set, both who used to create and consume content there. How are you wooing both creators as well as audiences onto your platform?

The creator community is at the heart of a social video sharing app. Great content provides audiences to keep coming back to the platform, which in turn motivates creators to create even more engaging content. At the same time, consumer views need to be converted into real rewards for creators. Roposo has invested in building powerful camera capabilities and video-editing tools over the past few years. Roposo is also the only platform that has a Coin program that rewards creators on the platform. With this approach, we have been able to create a very strong virtuous cycle that is helping both creators and audiences to create and enjoy video content on the platform.

Q) What is your revenue model right now? What is your model for monetizing content on your platform now?

Our revenue model is brand integrations and media monetization. We are seeing great interest from brands who want to connect with consumers on Roposo. Some of the largest digital agencies in the country are in discussions with us to execute these campaigns.

We monetize content on Roposo through brand integrations. Roposo is also the only platform that rewards creators on the platform transparently. In fact, one of our creators earned Rs 1.37 lakh rupees in the month of June through her content. With this approach, we have been able to create a robust virtuous cycle that is helping both creators and audiences to create and enjoy video content on the platform.

Q) There are quite a few other homegrown platforms too that are doing well as a direct result of TikTok's ban. How are you trying to differentiate yourself?

Roposo is the largest Made in India social video app in the country with more than 75 million downloads. This itself is a big differentiator as it is very complex to deliver a data-intensive service at this scale.

Most platforms have what we call uni-stream or a single feed of content. While there could be a recommendation engine behind the feed, it is still a single feed of content that could create an echo-chamber. By contrast, Roposo has three kinds of feed – a personalized feed based on recommendation, a feed based on creators that a user follows, and finally a channel-based feed. Channels on Roposo are theme-based contents just like on TV. Some of these channels on Roposo include Haha TV, Filmistaan, Sports TV, Bhakti and Daily Wishes. This channel-based feed is unique to Roposo and lets users tune into specific channels and content that they love.

It is not easy to offer such a wide variety of content without a vibrant creator community. At Roposo, creators are key to our success. As a platform that has been around for more than five years, we have invested heavily in building powerful camera capabilities and video-editing tools over the past few years. This is also one of the most complex features to develop. Most of the homegrown apps do not have any content creation features. It is surprising how platforms without content creation capability are able to offer content on their platform.

Roposo is about responsible entertainment. Content on Roposo goes through multiple rounds - both AI-based and human-based – curation process to ensure that the content on the platform is clean in line with the culture and ethos of the country.

Q) Do you anticipate this surge in numbers will continue over the next few days/weeks? In case the ban is lifted in the future, how do you ensure that these creators and the audience stays back on your platform?

Roposo was growing massively even before the ban came into existence. Even prior to the ban, we were getting installs of 700K per day and were the number 1 social app in the Play Store. We expect the momentum and growth to continue even if the ban were reversed.

The quality of content on Roposo, coupled with a strong content creator community that is embracing the platform in large numbers, and strong monetization,will ensure that the audience will stay back on the platform.

Q) What is your vision for Roposo? Where do you want to see it in the next year? What do you want the platform to stand for?

We are building Roposo for the world, not just India. Roposo, with more than 75 million downloads, is already the largest Made in India social video app in the country. We are confident that we will cross the 100 million download mark in the coming days. We plan to take Roposo to markets outside India in the coming months.

It's time for India to control its own digital playbook and live the 'Aatma Nirbhar' moment. Our vision for Roposo is to be India's largest social platform that provides responsible entertainment.