It is billed as India’s answer to Twitter. While some say it is better than Twitter, some say it’s a desi wannabe version of Twitter. The app is developed by Aprameya Radhakrishna and Mayank Bidwatka who had earlier brought us TaxiForSure and Vokal (the Indian answer to Quora). The app was launched early in 2020 but has now shot into the limelight because of the political backing it has received recently.
It is thought that the current government faceoff with Twitter has led to top government officials suddenly plugging the Indian-made app. Rail Minister Piyush Goyal and many others announced that they were shifting to Koo from Twitter.
Many have come out on the side of the app, not just because of the political backing it has, but also because of regional language support.
Twitter has been asked by government departments to take down certain handles that they claimed were spreading misinformation and promoting unrest. This was Twitter's reply.
People are moving either because of political affiliation, or because they want to support a homegrown platform.
Some are still reluctant.
Those who have a significant Twitter following will be unwilling and unlikely to leave Twitter. Managing Koo as well as Twitter may be tedious.
Koo is where official statements are now being released.
Will Twitter cave into to political pressure and change its stance now that there are hints of a possible Twitter Ban?
There are concerns about the kind of permissions that the app seeks, such as location, contacts, search history, contact info, user content and identifiers as pointed out by this user.
The abusive troll armies that populate Twitter literally and figuratively derive their daily sustenance from Twitter. People are wondering if they will also migrate to Koo.
One of the most combative and outspoken Indian voices on Twitter had this to say about shifting to Koo.
Twitter can be a hateful and acrimonious place. Some are happy that some of the more attacking handles on Twitter will be moving elsewhere.
There are those who feel that Koo is the imitation that doesn’t quite match up to the original.
Some feel that Koo doesn’t quite match up.
This tweet seems to refer to Kangana Ranaut’s pinned tweet about being the most versatile actor on the planet; where she compares herself with Meryl Streep and Gal Gadot.
With Koo as well, there is a bird as a logo. However this bird has no wings.
This tweet points out the irony of a discussion about Koo and about banning Twitter trending ---- where else? On Twitter!
Do you have something interesting you would like to share? Write to us at [email protected]
