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Jan 1, 2018

01/01/2018: Could Facebook Messenger be all things to all people? (Replay)

This week we’re bringing you our favorite episodes of the year. Think about all the apps you use in a day: Amazon, Facebook, Gmail, maybe Lyft or Uber. In China, some of those apps are banned. But it’s possible to use one app — WeChat — to do lots of things, like sending messages and ordering taxis. Facebook Messenger is trying to take on the same role in the U.S. Jennifer Pak, Marketplace’s China correspondent, gives us the lowdown on WeChat and talks about why there’s no equivalent in the U.S. … yet.

WeChat Shake function for finding new friends. Image from North China taken as part of UCL Social Networking Sites & Social Science Research Project.
Tom McDonald / Creative Commons

Subscribe:

This week we’re bringing you our favorite episodes of the year.

Think about all the apps you use in a day: Amazon, Facebook, Gmail, maybe Lyft or Uber. In China, some of those apps are banned. But it’s possible to use one app — WeChat — to do lots of things, like sending messages and ordering taxis. Facebook Messenger is trying to take on the same role in the U.S. Jennifer Pak, Marketplace’s China correspondent, gives us the lowdown on WeChat and talks about why there’s no equivalent in the U.S. … yet.