New Delhi, Oct 6 (PTI): Facebook outage did not just cost Mark Zuckerberg millions of dollars, it also lost users making messaging app Telegram gain 70 million new users overnight. As people failed to stay connected via messaging services for nearly six hours, many shifted to other platforms like Telegram and Titter.
According to Facebook, the outage that left 3.5 billion of its users away from accessing WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger was caused by a faulty configuration change.
Telegram founder Pavel Durov said it welcomed 70 million ‘refugees’ from other platforms in one day making the platform’s growth exceed the norm by an order of magnitude. The record traffic from other nations made the platform slow for some American users, Durov added. He asked his new users to stick around and see why telegram is ‘light years ahead of the competition.’
EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager found the outage showed what happens by relying on just a few big players and underscored the need for more rivals. The incident made Russia realize that Moscow was right to develop its own sovereign internet platforms and social networks.
Facebook led WhatsApp has earlier lost subscribers to Telegram when it changed its privacy norms and made it mandatory for users to continue using the app. Telegram became the most downloaded non-gaming app in January.
The recent outage, one of the longest in times hit trading of assets from cryptocurrencies to Russian oil, market players said but platforms like Telegram came as a saviour limiting the damage.