Are you ready to Jott? Jott App takes US by storm – chat app doesn’t need data!!

So we try and stay up to date with what is happening all over the internet in terms of new releases, updates to existing platforms and of course new apps released to the market. Today we focus on Jott App. The latest chat app that has US teens ‘chatting’ – what’s different? Well this one doesn’t require any kind of data package to work. So no need for wifi, or 3 or 4G to chat with people close by.

It shouldn’t be that much of a surprise really because SMS is still one of the most popular forms of communication by the mobile generation. According to Pew Internet , girls send nearly 4000 text messages per month – 3, 952 on average! With boys way behind at a paltry 2,815.

 

Interesting trickery at work then? So how does it work?

Well usually an SMS has to travel from the device to a cell tower and then back to the intended recipient, but Jott uses a mesh network that operates on Bluetooth low energy. Those within about a 100 foot catchment area can then send messages to and from each other.

 

Where we see an issue is in schools. Chat apps like Yik Yak are already banned via geo fence in some schools in the USA due to the issues of cyberbullying. It’s a step in the right direction, but of course as soon as they step outside of the geo fence they can access it again.

Many schools are now actively encouraging Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) days with a view to teaching and educating using specific school apps so that the students can then take them away with them and it means the school doesn’t have to spend on multiple devices. But with the ability to text without wifi or data, everyone in the school with a device and with their bluetooth on could communicate with each other. Perhaps cyberbullying won’t be an issue as you have to prove who you are with a real name and user name within your school, but what about just paying attention in class. Jared Allgood, Jott’s creator likens it to passing notes in class for the digital era. Well passing notes in class was forbidden in my school because it meant we weren’t paying attention. At least the teacher was in a fair fight as they might see the note being passed. With Jott, it’s all  happening behind ‘closed screens’.

 

Regardless, the app is going ballistic. The app more than doubled to half a million active users in March, up from 150,000 active users previously. Allgood told TechCrunch that the app continues to gain momentum, adding 15,000 to 20,000 users a day.

 

As always, keep an eye on this space and keep an eye out for Jott, taking the US by storm and it won’t be long, especially as we head towards to summer and many of us going back ‘home’ for it to hit our shores here in the UAE.