Sidechat, the nameless posting platform that started blowing up final yr on school campuses, seems to have acquired a rival nameless social platform, Yik Yak. When you could recall Yik Yak’s troubles from earlier years, the place bullying and harassment in the end led to an ignominious exit within the type of an acquihire by Sq., the gossip app relaunched underneath new Nashville-based possession in 2021, promising improved moderation.
However now, Yik Yak’s app has been republished underneath the identical App Retailer developer account as Sidechat — Flower Ave. It had initially been revealed underneath its personal identify, Yik Yak, Inc. (The primary model underneath the unique founders was Yik Yak LLC).
As well as, Sidechat’s customers are complaining in App Retailer evaluations in regards to the compelled migration from one app to the opposite.
“Carry again Yikyak,” one evaluate is titled, noting they obtained an replace that warned them that their “herd is transferring,” which pointed them to Sidechat’s app. A number of evaluations additionally complain that Yik Yak had been nameless, however Sidechat was asking for college kids’ faculty emails in an effort to take part.
“Yikyak merging with sidechat is the worst resolution,” one other reviewer lamented, including that Yik Yak had been accessible to everybody, not simply school college students. Plus, the reviewer mentioned, everyone seems to be fearful in regards to the merger as a result of their account data is now being related to their faculty.
Oddly, not all Yik Yak customers have gotten the push emigrate. As different App Retailer evaluations famous, Yik Yak continues to be working in some markets however not others. The truth is, we have been capable of log in to Yik Yak in our area people when testing the app right now — and haven’t but obtained a push to maneuver to Sidechat.
It may very well be that Sidechat is selectively pushing customers situated on or close to universities and school campuses emigrate, as that’s its core demographic.
What’s fascinating about this M&A occasion — which we’re listening to is extra akin to an acqui-hire than some form of large exit — is that each corporations’ founders have tried to remain nameless. Yik Yak earlier refused to reply to questions on its relaunch. And, even when being profiled by The New York Instances, Sidechat solely responded to press inquiries from a generic electronic mail. Dozens of pupil ambassadors for the app had additionally declined to reply to or ignored the paper’s inquiries.
Nonetheless, an SEC submitting for Sidechat’s mother or father firm, Flower Ave., factors to involvement from ex-Snap engineer Sebastian Gil and ex-Snap product designer Chamal Samaranayake. Per the submitting, the corporate raised north of $10 million final summer time, shortly after getting written up by numerous college press, like The Harvard Crimson and The Tufts Day by day. Extra just lately, Sidechat was coated by Annenberg Media, a paper funded by USC Annenberg Faculty for Communication and Journalism. Among the papers highlighted college students’ misgivings over Sidechat’s moderation capabilities and general affect on campus.
When requested, Sidechat’s founders declined to be interviewed for these articles, as properly.
Our telephone calls, emails, and different outreach to Yik Yak, Sidechat, and its founders haven’t been returned.
However there are many social media complaints in regards to the merger from less-than-satisfied customers.
The timing of the complaints and App Retailer evaluations level to a deal that went by someday final month. For what it’s value, Yik Yak Inc. up to date its privateness coverage in January, however it has not disclosed any change in possession.
Based on app retailer intelligence agency knowledge.ai, Yik Yak’s app modified the identify of its writer from Yik Yak Inc. to Flower Avenue Inc. on February 28, 2023.
The agency tells us the brand new Yik Yak has seen roughly 3.5 million installs since its August 2021 relaunch. The best rating it ever obtained was the day after its relaunch when it briefly grew to become the No. 1 Total app on the U.S. App Retailer. At this time, it now not ranks within the Total listings however is No. 89 in Social Networking.
Picture Credit: Sidechat screenshots
Sidechat, in the meantime, had simply barely north of 180,000 lifetime installs, making it the smaller of the 2 apps. (However maybe the one with extra runway!). Its highest rank was No. 30 within the U.S. Social Networking class, which was achieved in November 2022.
The merger is smart on condition that each Sidechat and Yik Yak share an identical goal of connecting folks anonymously, although Sidechat has extra squarely centered on school pupil gossip.
However staying nameless when asking others to belief your platform is an odd selection for these corporations — and one which appears to be backfiring. As a result of the customers don’t know who’s working Sidechat or what their values are, they’re hesitant to even present the corporate with their electronic mail, it appears.
Sarah Perez is out there through electronic mail [email protected] and Sign (415) 234-3994.
