TikTok clones and the user retention problem

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Editor's note: Few sectors see a fad as big as TikTok, the video-sharing application from Chinese company ByteDance. And fewer still get to see some of the brightest minds taking a shot at replacing the big guy, all at once. It has been over a month since the Indian government banned TikTok and 58 other Chinese mobile applications, citing data security concerns. In nothing short of a scramble, technology companies big and small rolled out their own short-form video platforms to fill the TikTok-shaped hole in the Indian social ecosystem.  The list is long and you’d be hard-pressed to tell them apart. But each of them claims to be more Indian than the other. For instance, note the taglines of these apps: Moj — Short video app by ShareChat | Made in India; Chingari — Original Indian short video app; Roposo — India’s own video app; Trell — Short video app made in India; Bolo Indya — Short video app made in India; and Josh — Made in India | Short video app. Reams have been written about these platforms and their …