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Yubo

Topic: Software

 From HandWiki - Reading time: 10 min
Short description: French social networking app

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Yubo (app)
A yellow square with rounded edges and a half circle in the middle
App icon seen on iOS
Developer(s)Twelve APP
Operating systemiOS[1] & Android[2]
Available in10 languages
List of languages
English, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, French, German, Norwegian, Dutch, Finnish and Swedish
Websiteyubo.live/en

Yubo (formerly known as Yellow) is a French social networking app developed by TWELVE APP in 2015. It is designed to "meet new people" and "create a sense of community".[3] The app had 60 million users as of 2022.[4]

History

Yubo was created by Sacha Lazimi, Jérémie Aouate and Arthur Patora when they were engineering students at CentraleSupélec Graduate school of the Paris-Saclay University and Télécom Paris.[5] Formerly known as Yellow, it was first launched in 2015.[6][7] According to the founders, the app seeks to create a space for "socializing online" and to "facilitate communication between people all over the world who share mutual interests."[3][8]

In December 2019, the app raised $12.3 million (€11.2 million) in a funding round led by French private equity firms like Iris Capital, Idinvest Partners, Alven, Sweet Capital and Village Global.[9] The funds will be used to develop its technology and expand its global user base.[10]

Between 2015 and December 2019, app users have created an estimated 2 billion friendships, along with exchanging more than 10 billion messages and launching 30 million livestreams.[11]

In 2019, the startup has generated $10 million in revenue.[11]

In 2020, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, Yubo recorded a significant rise in use due to quarantined teenagers, with a 550% increase in time spent in video discussion groups.[12] During this period, Yubo doubled the number of new daily signups, which reached 30,000 per day in mid-April. As of October 2020, the app had 40 million users worldwide, 60% of whom are Americans and Canadians.[13][14][15]

In September 2020, Yubo established its U.S. headquarters in Jacksonville, Florida.[16] At the same time, Yubo opened a new office in London.[15][17] In November 2020, Yubo carries out a new fundraising, raising $47.5 million (€40 million) from its historical investors and a new entrant, Gaia Capital Partner. The announced objective is in particular to strengthen moderation and develop the Asian market.[18][19] In addition, Jerry Murdock, co-founder of Insight Partners who invested in Twitter and Snapchat, joined the board of directors of Yubo.[20][19]

In December 2020, Yubo through its partnership with Snapchat, the AR

lenses from the Snap Inc. A camera kit were included directly in the app.[21][22]

In November 2021, Yubo opened a second office in New York City .[23]

Following the Robb Elementary School shooting on 24 May 2022 in Uvalde, Texas, the app came under criticism for failing to remove the perpetator's profile from their platform quickly, leaving the profile up for four days after the shooting.[24][25] Multiple witnesses reported that Ramos boasted about purchasing a firearm and posted threatening messages weeks before the tragic event occurred.[26]

In 2023, a tool operated by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and funded by Meta Platforms called "Take It Down" was released. The participating platforms including Yubo, OnlyFans, Facebook, Instagram and Pornhub agreed to remove non-consensual images or videos that users flag with the tool. The program relies on users uploading hashes of images and cannot identify edited versions of the image.[27][28]

Features

Core functionalities

Live streaming

Live streaming video is the main feature of the app. Each session can host up to ten streamers with an unlimited number of viewers. Streamers can only join a session room if they are invited by another streamer or if they create it. Viewers can send comments to interact with the streamers. Viewers and streamers can become friends. Viewers can also choose the live they want to join based on a variety of topics or the nationality of the participants.

The app includes a swiping feature, similar to the dating app Tinder, to swipe on other people profiles with similar age and messaging features. Users can choose to see only profiles with specific location, or specific gender.[29][13] Unlike many social networks, Yubo does not offer a "like" function on its app, and the app is not based on the "followers" count .[30][11]

Gender and pronouns

For Pride Month of 2021, Yubo has added 35 new gender options for users to identify with on the app. The list has been compiled with the UK NGO Mermaids.[31]

Pixels

In Mid-July 2021, Yubo launched its Pixels collection. This was a collaboration with pixel artist Banfan to create collectible digital art representing qualities, moods and personalities. Yubo users are able to purchase these in-app and can start their own collection or send it to their friends.[32]

YuBucks

In July 2021, Yubo launched its Virtual currency. The application's business model is based on in-app microtransaction system and not advertisements. Available in the Yubo store, YuBucks can be purchased in packs or via a weekly or monthly subscription system.[33][32] Yubo is based around microtransactions which allow users to, for example, give more visibility to their profile.[30]

Add by tag

Tags are categories that allows users to share their interests. In November 2021, Yubo launched Add by Tag. Using the feature users can search for people with specific tags to find friends.[34][35]

Communities and verification of profiles

Yubo consists of what is known as 'communities', one community is designed for those aged 13 to 18 years old, with an adult community for people aged 18 and over. The app requires users to enter their date of birth, name, gender identity, mobile number and a photo clearly showing their face, using age-estimation to verify a users age, with additional verification required if a user looks older than their stated date of birth to prevent younger users from contact with adults. Additionally Users can use a selfie and / or photo identification to prove their real age.

Safety

In 2018, Yubo joined the eSafety Commissioner's Tier 1 social media scheme in Australia for resolving cyberbullying.[36]

Yubo had increased media attention after the app popularized in 2019. It was quickly deemed "Tinder for Teens" by several online resources[37] as Yubo highlights a swiping feature similar to the popular dating app.[38] There have been several cases[39][40] of predatory behavior, grooming, child pornography and exploitation of minors[41][42][39][43] in relation to the app.

Yubo entered into a partnership with Yoti in February 2019 to use their age estimation technology to analyze faces and estimate how old users are. The company claims it has checked more than 22 million profile pictures and removed profiles belonging to under-13s as a result.[44][45] Yubo has since placed further safeguards on the app such as a proactive "engage and educate" approach for their community, a mix between AI and human moderators, banning sexually explicit profile content, and auto-blocking fake profiles.[36][46][47] However, there is still a possibility for users to create fake profiles containing images of minors as an attempt to hide their true identity.[38]

In 2020, Yubo announced a partnership with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). Yubo will share data in the event of "suspected illegal activity involving minors".[42][48] Yubo also implemented an algorithm which scans livestreams. If the algorithm detects inappropriate content in a livestream, the livestream is automatically removed.[16] NCMEC took on an advisory position for Yubo. John Shehan, vice president of NCMEC’s Exploited Children Division, joined the Safety Board of Yubo. The Safety Board's existing members included individuals from public and non-profit organizations such as Thorn, Diana Award, the London mental health service Good Thinking, and the founder of NetFamilyNews.org at the time of the partnership.[49] An independent report on child sexual abuse in the United Kingdom estimates that "the value of human moderation is evident from the success achieved by the social network Yubo, whose moderators interrupt livestreams to tell underage users to put their clothes on".[50]

In February 2021, Yubo launched pop-up alerts in an attempt to prevent inappropriate requests in private chat. When a user is about to share private information, such as their phone number or location, they receive a pop-up message warning them of the risks of sharing private information.[51][52]

In July 2021, Yubo was updated with the Muted Words feature. Users can choose any word, abbreviation or emoji that they find offensive to them and contents containing that information would be hidden from the user. Users are also able to choose from whom to mute the words – they can block from all users or just those who are not in their friends. Then the comments with these words will be automatically hidden from the user’s view.[53]

Between 2018 and 2023 there were twenty cases of child sexual abuse in Swedish courts where the perpetrator and the victim met through Yubo.[54]

References

  1. ↑ "Yubo: Make real friends live". https://apps.apple.com/ca/app/yubo-find-friends-livestream/id1038653883. 
  2. ↑ "Yubo – Livestream, chat, joue, fais-toi des amis.". https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=co.yellw.yellowapp. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Bindley, Katherine (2020-02-24). "Don't Talk to Strangers? These Apps Encourage It." (in en-US). Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. https://www.wsj.com/articles/dont-talk-to-strangers-these-apps-encourage-it-11582347631. 
  4. ↑ Klein, Alyson (2022-06-06). "Yubo and Other Social Apps Popular With Kids: Facts and Cautions for Educators" (in en). Education Week. ISSN 0277-4232. https://www.edweek.org/leadership/yubo-and-other-social-apps-popular-with-kids-facts-and-cautions-for-educators/2022/06. 
  5. ↑ "Sacha Lazimi (Yubo) : la social discovery à la française" (in fr). 2020-04-06. https://www.planete-business.com/2020/04/06/sacha-lazimi-yubo-social-discovery/. 
  6. ↑ "Yubo, l'application pour ados qui inquiète les parents" (in fr). https://www.cnews.fr/vie-numerique/2019-03-02/yubo-lapplication-pour-ados-qui-inquiete-les-parents-817940. 
  7. ↑ "Yubo lève 11 millions pour développer sa plateforme pour la génération Z" (in fr). 12 December 2019. https://www.challenges.fr/club-entrepreneurs/yubo-leve-11-millions-pour-developper-son-appli-video-de-cour-de-recre-digitale_689007. 
  8. ↑ Amsellem, Hugo (September 27, 2023). "The Loneliness Economy: How can technology help us belong?". https://www.hugo.pm/the-loneliness-economy/. 
  9. ↑ Tucker, Charlotte (2019-12-12). "Paris-based Yubo, the live video platform for Gen Z, snaps up €11 million to expand globally" (in en-US). https://www.eu-startups.com/2019/12/yubo-the-live-video-social-platform-raises-11-million-eur/. 
  10. ↑ "#Yubo raises the stakes for established social media" (in en-GB). 2019-12-12. https://www.eureporter.co/frontpage/2019/12/12/yubo-raises-the-stakes-for-established-social-media/. 
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 "Yubo raises $12.3 million for its social app for teens" (in en-US). 12 December 2019. https://social.techcrunch.com/2019/12/11/yubo-raises-12-3-million-for-its-social-app-for-teens/. [yes|permanent dead link|dead link}}]
  12. ↑ "Yubo adds digital currency to Gen Z social app" (in en-US). 2021-07-07. https://www.businessofapps.com/news/yubo-adds-digital-currency-to-gen-z-social-app/. 
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Bosilkovski, Igor (2020-04-18). "Social Platform For Teens Yubo Triples Its Daily New Users Amid The Coronavirus Crisis" (in en). https://www.forbes.com/sites/igorbosilkovski/2020/04/18/yubo-social-platform-for-teens-triples-its-daily-new-users-amid-the-coronavirus-crisis/. 
  14. ↑ "Comment Yubo a réussi à s'expatrier aux États-Unis en restant si discret en France" (in fr). 2020-10-14. https://www.maddyness.com/2020/10/14/yubo-etats-unis-reseau-social/. 
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Guihéneuf, Léna (2020-10-09). "Le réseau social français Yubo s'implante à Londres" (in fr). https://london.frenchmorning.com/2020/10/09/le-reseau-social-francais-yubo-simplante-a-londres/. 
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Gibbons, Timothy (28 September 2020). "French social media app Yubo sets up U.S. headquarters in Jacksonville". Jacksonville Business Journal. https://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2020/09/28/yubo-jacksonville-headquarters.html. 
  17. ↑ "Yubo, the Leading Social Space for Gen Z, Opens New London HQ" (in en-US). 2020-09-16. https://martechseries.com/social/yubo-leading-social-space-gen-z-opens-new-london-hq/. 
  18. ↑ "Yubo, le réseau social de la génération Z, lève 40 millions d'euros" (in fr). Le Monde.fr. 2020-11-18. https://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2020/11/18/yubo-le-reseau-social-de-la-generation-z-leve-40-millions-d-euros_6060147_3234.html. 
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Rauline, Nicolas (2020-11-18). "Yubo, le réseau social qui concurrence les Américains sur leur terrain" (in fr). https://business.lesechos.fr/entrepreneurs/financer-sa-creation/0604241095004-yubo-le-reseau-social-qui-concurrence-les-americains-sur-leur-terrain-340803.php#Xtor=AD-6000. 
  20. ↑ "Yubo : le nouveau grand réseau social français tendance chez les jeunes ?" (in fr). 2020-11-19. https://siecledigital.fr/2020/11/19/yubo-reseau-social-jeunes/. 
  21. ↑ Cohen, Jamie. "How Yubo's Creators Designed An App For Gen Z And Gen Alpha" (in en). https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiecohen/2021/04/08/how-yubos-creators-designed-an-app-for-gen-z-and-gen-alpha/. 
  22. ↑ Geekzilla.tech (2020-11-20). "Yubo: La novedosa red social para las nuevas generaciones" (in es-MX). https://geekzilla.tech/yubo-la-novedosa-red-social-para-las-nuevas-generaciones/. 
  23. ↑ "Un bureau à New York pour Yubo, le réseau social des ados" (in fr). 2021-11-11. https://www2.frenchmorning.com/geraldine-cohen-la-nouvelle-boss-de-yubo/. 
  24. ↑ "Texas gunman was nicknamed 'the Yubo school shooter' on messaging app" (in en). https://news.sky.com/story/texas-gunman-was-nicknamed-the-yubo-school-shooter-on-messaging-app-12622776. 
  25. ↑ "Yubo explained and why it has emerged as part of Uvalde shooting probe" (in en). https://abcnews.go.com/US/yubo-explained-emerged-part-uvalde-shooting-probe/story?id=84993459. 
  26. ↑ Tolan, Daniel A. Medina, Isabelle Chapman, Jeff Winter, Casey (2022-05-28). "Uvalde gunman threatened rapes and school shootings on social media app Yubo in weeks leading up to the massacre, users say" (in en). https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/27/us/yubo-app-salvador-ramos-threats-invs/index.html. 
  27. ↑ "Meta-funded online tool lets people remove their explicit images from the internet" (in en-GB). The Guardian. Associated Press. 2023-02-27. ISSN 0261-3077. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/feb/27/meta-online-tool-remove-explicit-images-internet-facebook-instagram. 
  28. ↑ Weatherbed, Jess (February 27, 2023). "Meta backs new tool for removing sexual images of minors posted online". https://www.theverge.com/2023/2/27/23617325/meta-ncmec-report-child-minor-sexual-exploitation-take-it-down. 
  29. ↑ "The Yubo social app" (in en-US). 2018-03-16. https://www.internetmatters.org/hub/news-blogs/yubo-formerly-yellow-social-media-app-parents-need-know/. 
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 Waters, Michael (2020-09-30). "Can you fund a social media company like a video game?" (in en-US). https://thehustle.co/09302020-yubo/. 
  31. ↑ "Yubo launches new features including 35 gender and 50 pronoun options" (in en-US). 2021-06-15. https://mumbrella.com.au/yubo-launches-new-features-including-35-gender-and-50-pronoun-options-688035. 
  32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 "Yubo Launches 'YuBucks', A New Virtual Online Currency" (in en-US). 2021-07-08. https://www.bandt.com.au/yubo-launches-yubucks-a-new-virtual-online-currency/. 
  33. ↑ "Yubo lance sa monnaie virtuelle et des badges à collectionner" (in fr). 2021-07-07. https://www.strategies.fr/actualites/medias/4064030W/yubo-lance-sa-monnaie-virtuelle-et-des-badges-a-collectionner.html. 
  34. ↑ "Yubo Launches a New Update: Here's What's New" (in en-US). 2021-11-23. https://www.makeuseof.com/yubo-new-update-what-new/. 
  35. ↑ WEBJORNALISMO (19 December 2021). "Juntos e amigáveis: app da Geração Z cria ferramentas para conectar jovens pelos interesses" (in pt-br). https://manezinhonews.com.br/noticia/15159/juntos-e-amigaveis-app-da-geracao-z-cria-ferramentas-para-conectar-jovens-pelos-interesses. 
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 "Roblox and Yubo join Australian efforts to tackle cyberbullying | Office of the eSafety Commissioner". 2018-08-14. https://www.esafety.gov.au/about-the-office/newsroom/media-releases/roblox-and-yubo-join-australian-efforts-to-tackle-cyberbullying. 
  37. ↑ "Teens using Yubo may be at risk – study" (in en). The Irish Times. https://www.irishtimes.com/news/education/teens-using-yubo-may-be-at-risk-study-1.3754117. 
  38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 Kitt, Ella. "The story behind Yubo: Tinder for teens unraveled". https://veritasshield.fsha.org/2134/features/the-story-behind-yubo-tinder-for-teens-unraveled/. 
  39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 "Man accused of sexually exploiting 12-year-old he met on Yubo app" (in en). https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2019/02/14/man-accused-sexually-exploiting-12-year-old-he-met-yubo-app/2868063002/. 
  40. ↑ KCBD Staff (July 5, 2022). "Lubbock man accused of soliciting child pornography through French social app" (in en). https://www.kcbd.com/2022/07/05/lubbock-man-solicits-child-pornography-through-french-social-app/. 
  41. ↑ O'Brien, Carl. "Teens using Yubo may be at risk – study" (in en). The Irish Times. https://www.irishtimes.com/news/education/teens-using-yubo-may-be-at-risk-study-1.3754117. 
  42. ↑ 42.0 42.1 "Yubo ne veut plus qu'on l'appelle "le Tinder des adolescents"" (in fr). 2019-12-12. https://www.rtl.fr/actu/sciences-tech/yubo-ne-veut-plus-qu-on-l-appelle-le-tinder-des-adolescents-7797400633. 
  43. ↑ Signoret, Perrine (2019-12-12). "On a testé Yubo, l'appli française de rencontres " amicales " utilisée par 25 millions de jeunes" (in fr). https://www.numerama.com/tech/579332-on-a-teste-yubo-lappli-francaise-de-rencontres-amicales-utilisee-par-25-millions-de-jeunes.html. 
  44. ↑ "Using AI for good with Yubo". www.yoti.com. 5 February 2019. https://www.yoti.com/blog/using-ai-for-good-with-yubo/. 
  45. ↑ "Teen social media app uses facial recognition to check users' ages". www.telegraph.co.uk. 28 April 2019. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2019/04/28/teen-social-media-app-uses-facial-recognition-check-users-ages/. 
  46. ↑ Baguette, Rude (2019-09-27). "YUBO: "We set limits and make users accountable for their behaviour"" (in en-US). https://www.rudebaguette.com/en/2019/09/yubo-we-set-limits-and-make-users-accountable-for-their-behaviour/. 
  47. ↑ says, Online Safety Briefing: Term 1 2017-18 #eSafety | Kent Online Safety Blog (2017-08-08). "Yellow app: Signs of smarter digital safety" (in en-US). https://www.netfamilynews.org/yellow-app-signs-smarter-digital-safety. 
  48. ↑ "Yubo s'associe à l'ONG NCMEC pour renforcer la sécurité de ses utilisateurs" (in fr). 2020-04-21. https://techguru.fr/2020/04/21/yubo-sassocie-a-long-ncmec-pour-renforcer-la-securite-de-ses-utilisateurs/. 
  49. ↑ Murphy, David (April 20, 2020). "National Center for Missing & Exploited Children partners with Yubo on child safety". https://www.mobilemarketingmagazine.com/national-center-for-missing-exploited-children-partners-with-yubo-on-child-safety. 
  50. ↑ "Inquiry calls for web pre-screening to end UK child abuse 'explosion'" (in en). 2020-03-12. http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/mar/12/police-struggle-to-keep-up-with-explosion-of-online-child-abuse. 
  51. ↑ "A day in the life of... Sacha Lazimi, co-founder and CEO at Yubo, the social video live-streaming app" (in en). 2021-07-09. https://econsultancy.com/a-day-in-the-life-of-sacha-lazimi-co-founder-and-ceo-at-yubo-the-social-video-live-streaming-app/. 
  52. ↑ Page (CMO), Rosalyn. "Privacy and security the focus on Safer Internet Day 2021" (in en-au). https://www.cmo.com.au/article/686155/privacy-security-focus-safer-internet-day-2021/. 
  53. ↑ "Yubo launches ability to mute words to increase user safety" (in en-US). 2021-07-16. https://mumbrella.com.au/yubo-launches-ability-to-mute-words-to-increase-user-safety-693378. 
  54. ↑ Aveshagen, Alice (2023-06-19). "Saga våldtogs av 19-åring på "Tinder för barn"". Svenska Dagbladet. https://www.svd.se/a/y6bakR/valdtogs-efter-matchning-pa-appen-yubo-tinder-for-barn. 

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