KIRUSA LAUNCHES DOTGO BOT STORE – WORLD’S FIRST OPEN RCS DIRECTORY

Dotgo.com is the only open directory available globally for RCS Business Messaging (RBM) Agents or Bots

Kirusa, a global leader in communication solutions over data networks for consumers and enterprises, today announced the launch of Dotgo Bot Store,the world’s first and only open directory of RCS Business Messaging (RBM) agents, also known as bots, available globally.The directory has a listing of RBM agents offered by brands,with descriptions, screenshots of the kind of conversations that are possible using the bot, and an option to start chatting with the bot.

RBM is revolutionizing business-to-consumer communication providing a richer and interactive brand experience from verified senders displaying brand logos. Brands get an opportunity to engage with their customers within their built-in messages app, using RBM agents. Numerous brands including Orange (global mobile operator in Europe, Middle East and Africa), Virgin Trains (train operating company in the United Kingdom), Subway (global restaurant chain), Citi (financial services company), Oi (leading mobile operator in Brazil), 9 mobile (leading mobile operator in Nigeria),and Cinemex (Mexican chain of cinemas)are using the RCS channel to engage with their customers for sharing updates, receiving feedback,and providing customer support.One of the key challenges faced by brands is to let their customers discover and connect to their bots, and to acquire new customers through the bots they have invested in. Similarly, consumers have no easy way to initiate an RCS chat with their favorite brands. With Dotgo Bot Store, brands get visibility for their RBM agents and an opportunity to acquire more customers.

Dotgo Bot Store enables consumers to discover and connect to bots of the brands they are interested in. To do so, consumers can either use the website – Dotgo.com, or they can use the Dotgo Bot Store from within their RCS capable messaging client, including Google Messages and Samsung Messages. After the consumer discovers the bot on the dotgo.com website or within the Dotgo Bot Store, all it requires is a simple click on the ‘Connect Me’ button to start chatting with the bot.

9 mobile, a leading telecom operator in Nigeria, who launched RCS and RBM with Google Jibe platform, has partnered with Kirusa to provide discovery and deep linking for all bots available from Google Jibe platform on the 9 mobile network, using the DotgoBot Store. For example, users can discover the Enin customer care bot by searching for “customer care” at Dotgo.com, read about what the bot offers, see the screenshots, and chat with customer care by clicking on the ‘Connect Me’ button.

Nick Lane, Chief Insight Analyst at Mobile squared said, “RBM is going to become one of the main channels by which a brand or business will communicate with its customers. But this will be a two-way channel, so the ability for the customers to find brands and businesses via chatbot search functionality will be critical in transforming the RBM channel from messaging to chat and providing the stickiness to keep customers in the RBM channel for longer.”

“As we launched RCS and RBM in Nigeria, and worked to launch RBM agents, we realized it was critical for the growth of the ecosystem that our customers be able to search for and initiate a chat with the bots available on the 9 mobile network. The Dotgo Bot Store from Kirusa puts together a common directory of RBM agents available locally, and globally, to solve the problem of discovery of RBM agents, which in turn boosts the visibility of not just the brands, but also our network. 9 mobile is happy to be a part of the Dotgo Bot Store launch since the beginning, and support Kirusa in this initiative,” expressed Bola Afuye, Head of Digital Media, 9 mobile.

Arnauld Blondet, VP Innovation MEA at Orange said, “Orange believes that directories will play an important part in the business messaging journey for both consumers and bot owners within the RCS ecosystem. Orange anticipates that there will be a range of general and sector-specific directories available, provided by MNOs and other specialists through various entry points. We congratulate Kirusa on the launch of the Dotgo independent Bot Directory and for being a first mover in this burgeoning space.”

Inderpal Singh Mumick, Founder, Chairman and, CEO of Kirusa said, “We are thrilled to launch the first and only directory available for RBM agents globally. As RCS is gaining popularity, more and more RBM agents are being developed and so, we believe there is a need for a directory to facilitate discovery and deep linking. We built Dotgo Bot Store with this need in mind,providing convenience and value to consumers, brands, and carriers. The directory helps brands attain more traction for their RBM agents and eventually witness a significant increase in engagement rate with consumers.”

Brands wanting to list their RBM agents in the directory should and carriers desiring to offer the Dotgo Bot Store for discovering bots on their networks should email [email protected].