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News Tech

Telegram vs. WeChat: Which One Is Better?

Nowadays, WeChat and Telegram are very popular message apps – everyone has heard of them.  They’re both capable of becoming the most popular ones in the whole world, besides Facebook Messenger, Whatsapp and Viber. WeChat can also be used as a payment service, a social network – and that’s not all. A telegram has introduced a token pre-sale in order to release TON – which we believe it’s something more than a blockchain. It’s been said that the Telegraph will offer more services soon, too.

We shall compare WeChat and Telegram to see which one is better.

It all happened when Telegram decides to introduce TON – that’s when the competition started.

What are the features?

You can also pay with WeChat

We’ve already established the fact that WeChat offers more services than Telegram. WeChat is also used for payment services for taxi, shopping, even utilities. It became a very good substitute for cash when it comes to the Chinese market. WeChat is powered by Chinese UnionPay, and this is why the app allows prompt p2p payments.

It’s actually more than that –WeChat is also testing a city service module. It’s meant to become an interface that can use the services of the city faster and in a more convenient way.

You can promote your business on WeChat

You can also use WeChat as an ad network – this is not the case for Telegram. If you have a business, you can promote it on WeChat.

With Telegram, you get encrypted texting

Telegram provides encrypted texting – as it is used as a messenger – and this is something that WeChat does not do.

All in all, we can say that you can use Telegram as a messaging app, while you can use WeChat as an “everything” app.

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Crypto News

Bitmain Bitcoin (BTC) Mining Equipment Producer Suspended from WeChat by Tencent

Chinese instant messaging application WeChat blocked a Bitmain account in which the company promoted the sale of Bitcoin (BTC) mining equipment. The information emerged online yesterday, September 10th, after some users noticed that the Bitmain channel in WeChat appeared as banned due to the WeChat terms and conditions.

“As a result of user complaints, the platform has reviewed and discovered that this account (Bitmain), without credentials or authorized licenses, has been publishing and distributing information from the relevant companies in which it participates,” said Tencent, the owner of WeChat.

They did not specify what kind of information Bitmain disclosed would have violated the WeChat’s rules, but everything indicates that it was something related to the promotion of Bitmain’s Antminer equipment.

The Bitmain account on WeChat suspended due to an allegedly Bitcoin (BTC) mining equipment promotion

Tencent, on the other hand, took that decision in line with its new terms and conditions and the guidelines released in August by the Chinese officials, which aim to block the posts related to cryptocurrency on Chinese instant messaging platforms. Since the measure came into force on August 21st, Tencent blocked more than 30 accounts owned by companies linked to cryptocurrencies.

According to the statement issued by the Chinese consortium for that date, these accounts were disseminating information on Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) and cryptocurrencies market, in general, violating the recently-adopted rules, that additionally to the China’s regulations adopted in 2017 that forbid the promotion for crypto-related activities, including Bitcoin (BTC) mining.

This is a series of actions that are being taken in this Asian country, increasing the prohibitions against crypto companies and the cryptocurrencies market, to which other Chinese telecommunications companies are joining. Such is the case of AntFinancial, the subsidiary of Alibaba, which is now free to restrict or suspend transactions with cryptocurrencies if it considers that they involve suspicious operations.

At the time of writing, Bitmain Bitcoin (BTC) mining equipment manufacturer, which is currently preparing its Initial Public Offering (IPO), had not pronounced itself on the suspension of its WeChat account.

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Crypto News

Tencent Banned WeChat Accounts Of Big Blockchain And Cryptocurrency Companies

The accounts of several companies related to blockchain technology and cryptocurrency in China have been banned from WeChat, the messaging application that belongs to the Chinese mobile and Internet company, Tencent.

According to information published in the local media, the accounts of companies that disseminate information related to this sector were permanently blocked in the application for allegedly releasing information regarding Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) and cryptocurrencies market, in general.

WeChat banned the accounts of dozens of blockchain and cryptocurrency companies, including some big names

According to the press release issued by Tencent, the crypto- and blockchain-related accounts banned from WeChat were violating the “Interim Provisions on the Development of Public Information Services for Instant Messaging Tools.” The list includes Deepchain, Huobi News, Jinse, CoinDaily, Golden Finance, Firecoin Information, Cannon Rating, Coin World Express Service, Daily Currency Reading, TokenClub, and Wujie Block Chain, among others.

In this regard, the CoinDaily website, one of the affected companies, stated that they had more than 100,000 registered users on WeChat and that they were building and operating a community of 45 groups within the app. They claim that their accounts are market-driven, while they only provide qualified information.

Tencent company, WeChat devs, works closely with the Chinese government

The WeChat messaging application is one of the most popular in China and is considered the “Chinese WhatsApp.” Until now, it was one of the few tools that allowed Chinese citizens to participate in the cryptocurrency market and access news on this topic, given the ban on ICOs and related advertising in China.

However, its system facilitates the censorship of the contents published on its platform, since Tencent recognizes that it shares data on its users with the Chinese government and that it eliminates the content that the regime considers inappropriate. Last May, Tencent suspended the Xiai Xiexi, a new blockchain-based app that would allow WeChat users to store contractual agreements.

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News Tech

WeChat 6.6.7 APK vs. WhatsApp 2.18.214 beta APK – Which One Is the Better Messaging App?

WeChat is a messaging app that excels at helping people communicate with their friends. The app has been downloaded by more than five million people on the official Google Play Store and this shows us that WeChat is a premium-level app. Nonetheless, the reason why WeChat is making headlines today is because a brand-new update has just arrived.

WeChat 6.6.7 APK Update

The latest update for WeChat sports the “6.6.7” version number and it is exclusive to Android users. The developers who are in charge of WeChat have posted the new update in the form of APK and this is why it’s exclusive to Android users. For those unaware of this, APK is an acronym for Android Package Kit. Moving on, let’s see what type of new features this update contains.

Saving Moments

One of the things that separates WeChat from other messaging apps is the fact that it lets users share special moments in their life. The app is equipped with a feature known as “Moments” which can be used to share photos and videos with other users.

Nonetheless, the Moments features is now being improved because the new update gives users the option to save a Moments post as a draft. This is a great addition because it will make it easier for users to draft a Moments post and then edit it later.

Android Package Kit

As we already mentioned, WeChat users who want to get their hands on the new update before the developers decide to roll it out OTA (over the air) need to install the APK version of it. With that being said, we need to note WeChat users who want to install the APK update need to enable the “Unknown Sources” feature.

WhatsApp 2.18.214 beta APK Update

Even though WeChat is a premium messaging app, it still has a long way to go before it can surpass WhatsApp in terms of popularity. In fact, WhatsApp has also received a new APK feature at the same time WeChat did and today we are going to see which update is better.

What’s New?

Just like WeChat’s latest update, the new WhatsApp patch comes in the form of APK. However, there is a big difference between the two updates because they focus on different things. While WeChat improved the Moments feature, WhatsApp’s latest 2.18.214 beta APK update improves the Groups features.

Group admins will now be able to select a special option which is going to disable chatting from the designated group. The only ones who will be able to chat or send information within that group are admins.

This is a nice feature, especially for people who join groups such as a newsletter in order to get information and not to talk with others. On the other hand, WhatsApp users will still be able to communicate within that group, but they will have to do it through private messages.

Final Words

WeChat and WhatsApp offer similar services, but the two are directed for different types of users. WeChat is ideal for people who enjoy sharing pictures and talking with people while WhatsApp only focuses on communication.

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News Tech

Alipay vs. WeChat – More Challenges as They are Going Global

Over the years, cash has established its status as the most common payment modality in every circumstance. Modern times have changed this situation and people used cash when they couldn’t buy something with their cards. Nowadays, countries like China have developed innovative solutions like scanning the QR code from the mobile payments operated by Internet giants like Alibaba or Tencent.

These third-party apps can be used for acquiring diverse products, from luxury brands to groceries and they are so popular because the payment is faster and secure. For this reason, the mobile payment market from China tripled in the last two years, reaching over $5 trillion in 2017.

This huge success ensured the system’s access overseas. Alipay and WeChat Pay are two third-party payment tools that are making their way out of China and this can be considered an important progress for tourist paradises.

Alipay and WeChat are important helpers for tourists

According to the World Tourism Organization, Chinese tourists spend over $200 billion in total during their travels. Their favorite destinations are Hong Kong, Thailand, Japan or Korea. Some of this exotic oasis is popular among other tourists as well, so the mobile payment apps developers thought about introducing their creations on these markets.

In this case, the two apps have started to develop partnerships with several other countries. In fact, since 2015, Alipay invested a lot of money into developing several local e-wallet and dedicated start-ups in countries like India, South Korea, The Philippines, Thailand and Singapore.

We can conclude that both apps are aiming to reach tourists. In this case, they will have to develop some local wallets for enabling peer-to-peer transactions and integrate them into the local economy. In this case, Alipay will face some issues because of local banking systems, so it looks like WeChat could win this race. The former could have an important advantage – it is the extension of the highly-used eponymous social networking and IM tool.

After Asia, Alipay and WeChat are planning to conquer Europe, North America and Australia. WeChat made the first step and entered Europe this year in July, two years after Alipay. Furthermore, both solutions entered the US supported by a partnership between providers like First Data and CITCON. The apps made some moves around Australia as well.

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