How 2020 Became A Nightmare For These Major Chinese Apps

So far the Indian Government has banned 267 Chinese apps in 2020 amid the border tensions with China. While the list could grow in the coming days, we are listing down the 10 most popular apps with a huge Indian userbase that got banned this year.

TikTok

The short-video-making platform suffered a huge blow after the ban was announced. The app climbed up the top spot in the Indian market in no time after its launch. The fresh concept of making 15-second videos and showcase your talent was well-received in India. However, the content on the platform had its fair share of talent and cringe.

As soon as the app got banned in the country and a major outcry for local product caught fire, many similar apps such as Josh, MxTakatak, and Chingari jumped the wagon to attract users. Moreover, Instagram also released the TikTok-like Reels feature to attract a major chunk of users. But will they be able to completely replace TikTok remains to be seen?

PUBG Mobile

Another app that garnered a huge user base is this battle royale game. The ban left many players shattered as PUBG wasn't just a game but also a professional E-sports phenomenon. Tencent Games has been trying to re-enter the Indian market ever since but the game still in limbo of uncertainty. The company is also said to have broken all ties with Chinese companies and is in talks with Indian firms to make a comeback.

As it happened with TikTok, there were many battle royale games launched just after the ban to lure more users. A game called FAU-G was recently launched and touted to be created by Indian developers. If PUBG still wants to be in the race, it should be able to make a comeback before the craze for such games fizzles out.

ShareIt

ShareIt used to be the go-to file transfer app before the ban came into effect. It made file transfer very simple between different operating systems such as iOS and Android. Besides, it offered a faster transfer speed compared to conventional Bluetooth transfer. It might not be easy for the app to make a comeback as there are already many homegrown alternatives in the market that offer equally good transfer speeds.

Ali Express

Popular e-commerce platform Ali Express succumbed to the latest ban of 43 Chinese apps. The app did evade India's previous crackdown against Chinese apps but was recently discontinued. AliExpress is owned by the Chinese tech giant Alibaba. The conglomerate primarily has also made several investments in India.

Shein

The popular e-commerce app also had a good userbase in the country. The app offered great deals on cosmetic products and other accessories including clothing for women. The app garnered a good loyal userbase but its chances of a comeback are very slim as there are many e-commerce apps that offer similar kinds of services.

Club Factory

This is another e-commerce app that was widely used in India. It offered branded products at a very aggressive price. The company also had tie-ups with many Indian firms to sell their products through its platform; however, after the ban, those brands shifted to other e-commerce platforms.

Cam Scanner

The app was a great tool for scanning documents comes with integrated OCR technology. The app lets users convert receipts, notes, documents, photographs, business cards, whiteboards, etc. into PDF files. These PDFs are saved within the apps and can be used for future reference. Since Cam Scanner is no longer available, there are some good alternatives including Adobe Scan, Microsoft Office Lens, and Google Drive.

UC Browser

One of the popular browsers with over 50 crore downloads, also faced a ban in the country. The browser was widely used among Android smartphone users in India and offered a simple and user-friendly interface. If you are looking for someone who's looking for Indian alternatives, then browsers like Bharat Browser, JioBrowser, and Omigo might interest you.

Helo

Helo was a good attempt to take on Facebook by the maker of the once-popular social media platform Orkut. While it got banned in India before it could reach the level of popularity Facebook has achieved, it still gained good traction before its operation were put to rest by the Indian Government.