Shhh! Keep it quiet, but secrets app’s disappeared
Print Edition
BARELY a month after being launched at the Apple App Store, China’s secret-sharing app Mimi has vanished from its virtual shelves.
And the reason for its disappearance?
Well, just like the true identity of the anonymous users making confessions or comments on the app, it’s anyone’s guess.
However, Android phone users wanting to explore the anonymous lives of their friends can still download Mimi — Chinese for secret — from that platform’s app stores.
Developed by Shenzhen Wumii Technology — which could not be reached for comment — Mimi is influenced by trendsetting anonymous social networking apps Secret and Whisper that launched in the United States this year.
“Mimi is an online masquerade where friends gossip and unleash emotions under anonymity and with no restraints,” claims the Mimi introduction on the Shenzhen Wumii blog.
It adds, “Do you want to take a peek at the true color of your friends?”
The popularity of Mimi is viewed as a backlash against real-name social network platforms like WeChat, where some users feel they can no longer speak freely as friend lists are filled with family members, clients and bosses.
“It seems that posting moments of ‘positive energy’ is becoming part of social conventions on WeChat,” a Mimi user posted.
“It is flooded with shows of family affection, hard work and chicken soup for the soul. I have had enough.”
Mimi users feel free to unburden themselves of complaints and frustrations — be it office politics, family friction, career concerns or unrequited love.
“It feels so good when you know you’re not the only one frustrated with life,” loyal Mimi user Helena Huang said.
And one way to feel better about oneself is by comparing your concerns with the harrowing tales of others on Mimi, as the platform is rife with lurid revelations of adultery, back-stabbing and double-crossing.
Huang admits that she sometimes suspects many of these stories are created by the app developers to attract eyeballs. After all, anyone can post anything anonymously with Mimi.
And a downside of anonymous social networking is its loose control over content posted, making Mimi vulnerable to being used for slander.
Apple declined to comment on the removal of Mimi from its store, but said security and privacy concerns are the major reasons for app removals.
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