By Astrid Ruiz
Marketing4eCommerce Editor
TOThroughout the history of social media, it has often been the case that, in their struggle to capture the attention of users, rival platforms have been “inspired” by others to improve their functions or present new features. In this sense, we can remember how Instagram borrowed Snapchat’s Stories function or how TikTok launched TikTok Now to respond to the BeReal fever, although it ended up eliminating it . And now, it has happened again, this time with TikTok and its new independent social network Whee .
Taking inspiration from Instagram , TikTok has introduced Whee , an app whose value proposition is to be a platform for sharing photos and videos only with close friends . The app has been launched in a dozen countries, but is not yet available in Spain .
Of course, this isn't the first time TikTok has taken a cue from Instagram. In fact, in April of this year we learned that the Chinese social network was preparing to launch TikTok Notes , an image-sharing app. However, it seems strange that it decided to create a new app and not integrate functions to control who can see and interact with posts, as Meta does, in TikTok Notes itself.
Whee, a launch without much noise
In contrast to what we're used to, Whee's launch has uruguay number data been very discreet. ByteDance has launched the app without any special events or announcements . One of the first to discover Whee has been Artem Russakovskii , a professional developer and founder of Android Police and APK Mirror, who posted the news on his X account.
The app is available on the Google Play Store since June 7th and there you can read the following description : “Whee is a new social app created to keep you connected with your close friends through life’s spontaneous moments. Capture and share real-life photos that only your friends can see, and be your most authentic self. Whee is the best place for great friends to share important moments of their lives.”
As can be seen in the images on the Play Store, Whee offers an interface very similar to Instagram , both in its colors and its functions. It also features similar, albeit simplified, elements, such as three tabs at the bottom (messages, camera, and feed) and a notification tab at the top.