By letting app developers build around Facebook Messenger, Facebook hopes to attract users from other chat apps. Some notable apps for Facebook Messenger include Giphy, Fotor, and Pic Stitch. Facebook also developed its own apps for Messenger like Selfied<\/a>, which lets you create stickers of your different emotions<\/strong> to send to friends. There are over forty apps at for Messenger at launch, though most of them do the same thing. For a list of notable apps to try, take a look at Chris\u2019 roundup<\/a>.<\/p>\n Apps install through the App Store or Google Play and look like standalone apps<\/strong> on your home screen. Unfortunately, they only work with Messenger so you\u2019ll see Messenger specific apps installed on your phone. For example, if you have Pic Stitch<\/a> already installed, another Pic Stitch app for Messenger will also be installed.<\/p>\n Some may find this redundancy annoying, something that\u2019s already a problem for Facebook. The company previously angered users<\/a> by removing Messenger from the Facebook app<\/strong>, forcing users to download a separate app.<\/p>\n Facebook may be an American company but it has sights set on a global level<\/strong> and has to compete with chat apps from around the world. Apps like LINE, KakaoTalk, and WeChat dominate Asia and Facebook is trying hard to replicate the success of these apps by becoming more than just a messaging app. Asian chat apps morphed from traditional chat apps into sprawling platforms for different types of interaction like buying stickers<\/strong> and playing casual games<\/strong>, a direction Messenger seems to be going. Don\u2019t think these apps are a threat? Just look how Apple highlighted WeChat<\/a> running on the Apple Watch.<\/p>\n Facebook wants Messenger to become a platform where celebrities and brands can easily reach people<\/strong>. KakaoTalk lets users follow their favorite pop stars and brands for updates. With the revamped Messenger, Facebook is allowing brands and companies direct access to its users. Imagine companies providing support and shopping updates via Messenger. This allows companies to have a more human approach.<\/p>\n However, these new features are still experimental<\/strong>. Facebook has no idea how users will use Messenger or if they\u2019ll find the additional features useful. The company will be carefully monitoring user behavior to see what\u2019s successful with Messenger and bring those features to WhatsApp. While Messenger will be Facebook\u2019s platform for trying new things, WhatsApp will stay conservative for now. Developers are begging WhatsApp to open its doors to developers but WhatsApp is playing it safe<\/strong>, worrying that opening itself to developers would result in unsolicited communications<\/a>.<\/p>\n It\u2019ll be interesting to see which features and apps resonate with users and which ones don\u2019t. What works in Asia may not work in America<\/strong> and it\u2019ll be Facebook\u2019s challenge to balance both cultural sensibilities in its app. By turning Messenger into a platform, Facebook has the freedom to turn its chat app into anything it wants. Now excuse me while I annoy my friends by replying exclusively with GIFS.<\/p>\n 5 Apps to Try This Weekend \u2013 March 20th 2015<\/a><\/p>\n App of the Week: Avast GrimeFighter<\/a><\/p>\n Diary of a fat man \u2013 MyPlate (sometimes life gets in the way)<\/a><\/p>\n Nintendo will finally make games designed for smartphones<\/a><\/p>\n Internet Explorer is dying: a history of the world\u2019s most hated browser<\/a><\/p>\n Follow me on Twitter: @lewisleong<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Facebook Messenger is evolving into a platform to expand Facebook\u2019s dominance. On the surface, apps in Messenger may seem trite, it\u2019s actually a very bold and smart move by Facebook. Messenger has been struggling to get people to use Messenger instead of apps like Hangouts, WhatsApp, and Asian competitors like KakaoTalk, LINE, and WeChat. When … Continue reading “Facebook Messenger now supports apps. Here’s why it matters.”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2033,"featured_media":79923,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","wpcf-pageviews":0},"categories":[],"tags":[2445],"usertag":[],"vertical":[],"content-category":[],"class_list":["post-79900","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-app-subdomain-redirectionfacebook-messenger"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79900","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2033"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79900"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79900\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":329651,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79900\/revisions\/329651"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/79923"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79900"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79900"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79900"},{"taxonomy":"usertag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/usertag?post=79900"},{"taxonomy":"vertical","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vertical?post=79900"},{"taxonomy":"content-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content-category?post=79900"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Jon](\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2015\/03\/Jon-selfie-319x568.jpg\" "\\"Jon")
<\/p>\n![\"Giphy](\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2015\/03\/Giphy-for-Facebook-Messenger-568x446.jpg\" "\\"Giphy")
<\/p>\n![\"Kakaotalk](\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2015\/03\/Kakaotalk-follow-celebrities-568x448.jpg\" "\\"Kakaotalk")
<\/p>\n![\"Meme](\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2015\/03\/Meme-app-for-Facebook-Messenger-568x504.jpg\" "\\"Meme")
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