Online dating has been a growing trend in Western hemisphere. People enjoy flirting all over the world. In Nigeria, it seems the trend is growing increasingly as a result of the mobile penetration in the country. The use of mobile phones instead of computers has made it easier to visit these dating sites.
That is what Eskimi, a Lithuanian-based start-up, capitalizes on: they created a platform for online flirting and dating specifically targeted at mobile phones. The network has over 5million registered users. Turns out, Eskimi is growing in popularity mostly in Africa, becoming the biggest online flirting community in Nigeria with about 3 million of new registered users. Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania and Namibia are also showing substantial growth.
Eskimi targets all mobile phones, with light versions for simpler models and heavier versions for smartphones. Its main appeal is ease of access: users do not need any credentials like email address to sign up, only a username, gender, date of birth and location. Once registered, users can browse all the content, upload photos and easily interact with other users.
Due to its growing demographic, Eskimi would open its API for selected developers. The company is looking to cooperate with developers that would build applications suggested by the Eskimi’s team.
According to Vytas Paukštys, CEO, the suggestions are based on market and customer research, making them more likely to succeed. Eskimi promises to heavily promote such apps (for example, through product placement on the front page), reducing developer’s need to spend time and money on marketing. Developers with their own applications outside of the suggested list are also invited to join.
‘We are focusing on creating a fun and sticky mobile flirting community for people to chat, blog, share photos and experiences. We expanded the product with interests function that help customers express their interests and find new people who share the same interests. We try to make flirting fun, use match functions to fight gender imbalance which often happens in emerging countries.
To apply for the access to API, Nigerian developers need to contact Arūnas Butėnas.