Hike acquires Zip Phone, to launch free app-based voice calling soon

NEW DELHI: Instant messaging application Hike messenger Thursday acquired a free voice-calling company - Zip Phone - as it gears up to launch a free app-based voice-calling services.

Launched in December 2012, Hike has over 35 million users and has raised $86M from Tiger Global and BSB till date.
“Zip Phone’s technology will allow us to bring free voice calling to the market much faster. Incidentally, this is one of the top requested features from our users as well,” Kavin Bharti Mittal, founder and CEO, hike messenger, said in a joint statement.

Zip Phone was founded by Anuj Jain in the US and has developed a voice-calling app, which works globally. “As a start-up enthusiast, I had been keeping a close eye on hike and its developments and I am excited to now be a part of one of the biggest and fastest growing startups in the Indian Internet space and finally, building for India,” Jain said in the joint statement.

The acquisition fuels the consolidation in the global Over-the-top (OTT), or apps, on messaging and calling services space, which recently saw the acquisition of Nimbuzz by UK-based internet service provider New Call Telecom.

Over-the-top (OTT), or apps, on messaging and calling services have proved popular and adoption levels have soared in many countries over the last two years, resulting in Facebook’s $19 billion acquisition of WhatsApp, which has over 600 million active subscribers globally, and Japanese internet giant Rakuten’s $900 million buy of Viber, with 450 million users globally.

The services are driving much higher levels of user engagement.