Serial entrepreneur Bhavin Turakhia, The CEO and founder of Directi Group has launched a professional chat app called Flock.
The application would be available for free to download on Android, iOS, Windows, Mac and Chrome.
Flock aims to be the WhatsApp for business users that allows employees to sign in using their work e-mail and sync the entire office directory to the employees’ devices.
“This is not a duplication of existing applications such as Viber, WeChat, WhatsApp or any other applications. Chatting is a crowded space but nobody has really nailed it yet for business,”
Turakhia told a website ‘Business Line’.
Flock allows employees to sign in using their work email, and automatically syncs the entire office directory to every employee’s device. This is something services like WhatsApp and Skype don’t provide. Also, on public instant messaging services an employee’s personal and business communications get mixed up, which won’t happen on Flock.
It also allows external members (like clients) to be included in the chats. Users can share files as well, which are stored for a period of 30 days after which it’s removed from Flock’s server. Team members not on Flock can also be messaged, and they will receive an email notification with the message(s).
Flock was developed in India and challenges similar applications that are bloated with features or mixes business and personal communications. This application only recognises corporate e-mail IDs (while sending friend requests) is to free to download and install. It also runs on desktops.
While ‘Flock’ is intended to be free, it will bundle other services under Riva FZC, the umbrella holding several applications such as Ringo and Hola (both cheaper voice calling applications) that would bring in revenues.
