Updated: August 11, 2020 7:10:25 PM
The Los Angeles-based thriller is the latest short video app to record TikTok.
Triller, the Los Angeles-based short video app, backed by Hollywood producer Ryan Kavanaugh and music artists such as Snoop Dogg and Lil Wayne, aims to fill the void left by TikTok’s departure from India.
“We are an American company and we have very strict rules, regulations on local, state and federal laws that we must follow,” said Abbos Roohparvar, Senior Vice President at Triller, indianexpress.com about a call from Los Angeles. “The only data we collect is music taste, the type of content you like,” he said, adding that being an American startup thriller puts it in an advantageous position over its competitors.
The startup in Los Angeles said that although the app will be available in India for a while, a next launch is expected. The ban on TikTok by the Indian government at the end of June has already brought Triller to light with downloads rising from almost 1 million to 30 million almost overnight. To date, Triller has been downloaded 40 million times from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store in India.
Although a city-centric app, Triller is taking a different route in India, where it has to contend with stiff competition from local players like Roposo and Mitron. “We are a platform where everyone is welcome, where all kinds of creativity are celebrated,” Roohparvar said. “We will continue to reach out to every section of society and geography in India to encourage young people to adopt and enjoy the platform.”
Despite the local competition, he is sure that Triller is a better product than other similar apps. “Anyone can go ahead and create a Mickey Mouse app and stitch something together, but building a great product with a great team of engineers is another thing,” he added.
Roohparvar thought about how much went into making Triller, which was launched in 2015, two years before TikTok went live. “We have some of the most talented product and technical people in the world, most with PhDs, who have so far created the most sophisticated algorithms and AI, replacing TikTok and everyone else. We also have one of the most advanced algorithms for our Rico engine currently underway, ‘he said.
One big difference between Triller and its competition, as Roohparvar explained, is the relationship and treats the startup with music labels and the top musicians of the world. Warner Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group have licensed Triller, while its fishing investors include Snoop Dogg, The Weekend, Marshmello, Lil Wayne, Kendrick Lamar, Baron Davis. Triller also has active collaborations with Spotify and Apple Music. Roohparvar said the company is in talks with local music labels, although he was not yet ready to reveal the names.
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“Our core strengths lie in archiving content. Instead of serving videos of just popular users on our platform, it also offers recommendations for the content shared by other people who are not influencers that users can add to their social discovery pages, “said Roohparvar .
Unlike TikTok, Triller is a music-first app that has social elements to it. The app is aimed at artists who make music. In a way, Triller is a destination for content creators, artists, music producers or anyone who appreciates music and enjoys viewing original content.
“If you sing and dance together, a company like us and India, where song and dance are huge, whether it’s with your artists in the label music industry or in the film industry, you have the best combination. of both, “he explained. In recent months, several Indian artists such as Armaan Malik, Bhuvan Bam, and Awez Darbar have joined Triller.
Roohparvar acknowledged that influencers are a lifeline for social platforms like Triller. Unlike rival platforms, the company is against paying them to participate in its platform. “Our influencers see enormously more value than just a single salary.” According to Roohparvar, artists are joining Triller because they know their music will be distributed on a platform that is number one in the world.
While the ban on TikTok in the US is making it difficult, Ryan Kavanaugh, the Hollywood mogul who has Triller through his investment firm Proxima Media, and CEO Mike Lu are doing everything they can to make the short video app into the big picture bring. Thriller recently filed a lawsuit for patent infringement against Tiktok and its parent company ByteDance. In its lawsuit, Triller claims that TikTok infringes his patent for “making music videos that are synchronized with an audio track.” Triller claims that it had already patented the video format in 2017.
One big difference between Triller and its competition, as Roohparvar explained, is the relationship and treats the startup with music labels and the top musicians of the world. (Image credit: Thriller)
The future of TikTok is uncertain after President Donald Trump recently issued executive orders banning the social media app in 45 days if it is not sold by its Chinese-owned parent company. On August 1, Triller jumped to number one position in the US App Store and last week reached the top of the Google Play Store in more than 85 countries. Roohparvar said the app has 260 million downloads and more than 75 million active users worldwide, as of August 10th.
Still, Triller has a long way to go to pick up TikTok, which had 2 billion installations in April, of which 611 million were in India. Even though TikTok is currently banned, if Microsoft manages to buy TikTok’s US and India operations, it would be difficult for Triller to compete. And the competition also comes from Instagram-owned Facebook, which recently launched a TikTok-like feature called Reels in the US and India.
To bolster its presence in India, Roohparvar says Triller will soon be getting local features that will help grow the app’s popularity in the country. Thriller – headquartered in Los Angeles and with offices in New York, London and Paris, has more than 100 employees in India.
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