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Invite-only chat app Clubhouse booms in Japan

Feb 02, 2021 | News On Japan

Feb 02, 2021 (Japan Today) - Private social audio app Clubhouse is growing rapidly in Japan and now ranks first among free apps on Apple's App Store in a test of its international viability following its latest funding round.

The San Francisco-based app, which users must be invited to join, reached a valuation of $1 billion in the round announced January 24, a source familiar with the matter said confirming media reports.

Clubhouse built a following among venture capitalists and startup founders gossiping in its audio-only chatrooms following its launch last March as the COVID-19 pandemic spread around the world.

In Japan, it hit a tipping point over the last week with a swelling user base of investors, tech industry workers and media.

Opportunities for spontaneous social interaction have been limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with Clubhouse providing an alternative forum to Twitter, one of the most successful social networks in Japan.

"The power of social media is erupting in every direction," Shintaro Yamada, CEO of flea market app Mercari wrote in a Twitter post in reference to recent trends including Clubhouse.

Fashion billionaire Yusaku Maezawa is among public figures shifting activity to the app to talk about the money giveaways that helped make him Japan's most followed Twitter account with more than 10 million followers.

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