Can Arattai go one up on WhatsApp?

India has billions online - yet homegrown messaging apps remain rare. Arattai is catching eyes, but can it move beyond the buzz to challenge WhatsApp or will it fizzle out like Koo? Indian social media apps often stumble because they fall short on the essentials: tech, business and innovation. The tech architecture of a successful social media app is not difficult to replicate. The business model is also established around targeted advertising, which is again not a barrier. The summit lies in the creative expression of users, where most Indian apps struggle with originality. Copycat versions of established media platforms can't break their network power despite having a large potential customer base. The lack of innovation has posed the biggest challenge to the development of homegrown social media, although technical support and monetisation strategies have also contributed to the overall gloom.

The holy grail for media platforms is creating a new form of content that activates the network effect. As content tech evolves, it opens a wide field of innovative social communication. The ability to pull all existing and emerging content formats onto one platform, however, does not ensure success. Community development requires special effort through discoverability, where the tech backend comes into play.

The safe course in building an SM platform is to offer a bundle of services that includes content sharing. Instead of betting on the next TikTok, tech companies are more comfortable developing a WeChat-like platform that offers a broad range of services, from shopping to playing games. In either case, Chinese app developers have shown the way to break Silicon Valley's stranglehold over social media. Indian apps, unfortunately, score poorly on both convenience and creativity, which makes every new attempt at a social media breakthrough a heartbreaking effort. Then again, all it takes is one success. Social media will remain a dynamic medium, keeping hopes alive for the eventual arrival of an Indian champion.