The partnership between Rakuten Viber and Snap Inc. brings augmented reality lenses and filters to Viber’s messaging app.

The global messaging platform will begin rolling out the new feature called Viber Lenses Powered by Snap. The feature, created in cooperation with Snap Inc., will bring AR-video messaging and photos to the Viber application. Thirty “Viber Lenses,” including animal masks and Viber Characters, an underwater Lens, silly cat interactions, and more, are set to debut on the app.

“We’re excited to bring the Snap camera to Viber users,” said Djamel Agaoua, CEO of Rakuten Viber. “Through this partnership, we want to empower the creativity of our users with AR, and we’re looking forward to inspiring new fun-filled ways for people to keep in touch with their friends and family members.”

The company will continue to add roughly 20 new lenses each quarter through similar partnerships with brands for creating exclusive Viber-branded lenses. The first few organizations to make to the list are the World Wildlife Fund, FC Barcelona, and the World Health Organization.

“The ability to offer sponsored and branded Lenses will provide an additional revenue stream to Viber, as business partners will be able to create custom Lenses for their communities on the platform,” said Viber.

Features such as instant AR overlays for video and photos, beautification features, and integration with bitmoji, can be accessed on the Viber app through Snap’s camera kit, bitmoji, and creative kit.

Elliot Solomon, Director, Camera Platform Partnerships at Snap Inc., exclaimed that the partnership is a win-win for both companies. “It will help us expand our Augmented Reality technology into regions where Viber already has a solid footprint and help Viber’s users express themselves through AR on the Viber platform,” said Solomon.

Follow us on LinkedIn

Read other Articles