The firm behind the home-grown messaging app, Hike, has introduced a brand new in-app platform known as ‘HikeLand’. Available as an early preview, it’s a digital world the place customers can work together with their associates. They can even watch movies collectively in HikeLand, and even make new associates, the corporate mentioned on Wednesday.

To begin off, Hike is providing two digital environments – ‘Home’ and ‘Big Screen’. While the previous permits customers to observe movies with present associates, the latter lets them watch motion pictures with unknown customers and make associates with them. Videos are sourced solely from YouTube for now, however the firm says that different OTT apps will probably be supported quickly. The options have simply began rolling out to a choose set of customers.

Talking to Hindustan Times, Hike founder & CEO, Kavin Bharti Mittal, mentioned that HikeLand is geared toward mobile-first and mobile-only audiences. “This is the early preview with two unique shared experiences. The goal here is to listen to our users and understand what works and what more do they need. We will be building many more experiences on top of the version you see today”, he mentioned.

Mittal additionally introduced plans to monetize Hike within the coming months. While the app doesn’t have any subscription plans proper now, the corporate will apparently quickly introduce a premium tier. It will probably be provided concurrently with the free service, he mentioned. “You will see us making inroads into that (monetization) in a few months, simply as a option to see what is feasible on the platform. We are experimenting with methods to make income”, he instructed YourStory.