UC Browser Launches New Version for Increased Mobile Data Saving Amidst Soaring Popularity

UC Browser, world’s No. 1 third-party mobile browser and a content platform, owned by UCWeb-a business within Alibaba Innovation Initiatives Business Group, has recently launched a new version that allows increased mobile data saving option for users. The announcement comes soon after UC Browser was part of mobile market data and analytics firm App Annie’s list of Top 10 Most Downloaded Apps of the Decade.  According to App Annie, UC Browser is the only browser in the ranking and beats other popular browsers to rank No. 8 in the Top 10 Apps by All-Time Downloads worldwide for the decade. It is also worth noting that 8 out of 10 Apps in the ranking are owned by US companies while UC is the one of the two non-US Apps.  

UC Browser is being preferred as users feel it runs faster while saving more mobile data, making it a better option in some fast-growing markets such as India and Indonesia. UC Browser 12.14.0.1221 boasts of over 200% faster download speed while downloading videos and applications, and can save up to 80% mobile data on while viewing images, watching videos or reading news, as compared to its previous version. The updated version also makes it easier and faster for users to discover content across categories with its 20 distinct channels that cover entertainment, sports, fashion, celebrities and various other categories of content in 15 key languages for Indian users.

Commenting on the launch, Mr. Huaiyuan Yang, Vice President, UCWeb Global Business, said, “With the launch of the 12.14.0.1221 version, our users can enjoy the best browsing experience using the least amount of data. The launch is part of our commitment to provide better mobile internet services to billions of users around the world, wherever they are and whatever device they are using; at the same time delivering our promise of a fast and smooth web experience with lowest data usage ever. Along with many new and enhanced features, UC Browser’s latest version is the only browser that allows users to bookmark content and videos to ‘Watch Later’, allowing users to continue enjoying their favourite videos on their Android devices even when there is no usable network connection.”

By detecting the type of internet connection you have, the device you are using, and what webpage you are browsing, UC Browser fetches the most suitable version of the webpage for you. With Version 12.14.0.1221, users can play and watch videos while it is downloading in the background. Video download will pause if the user loses internet connection and automatically resume once the user reconnects to Wi-Fi. With its file Download Resumption function, active file downloads that are interrupted can be resumed automatically. UC Browser can modify image size according to different devices to enable users to save more mobile data, especially when browsing image-rich websites. Moreover, with its Pre-loading Feature, UC Browser allows users to preload videos while they are on Wi-Fi network and watch them later when they are on mobile data. UC Browser is also enhancing its ad-blocking feature that allows users to block majority of ads on the webpages and save huge amount of cellular data.

UC Browser is the flagship product of UCWeb, part of Alibaba Innovative Initiatives Business Group. Over the last couple of years, UC Browser has redefined the role of a modern mobile browser as a content aggregator and distributor with the launch of its content platform. UC Browser recently reported over 1.1 billion user downloads worldwide (excluding China) with half of its global installs from India.

According to App Annie, Mobile has been at the heart of major changes in consumer behaviour this decade by giving consumers a window to the internet in the palm of their hands. This decade has been a time of remarkable growth for the mobile economy. With a 5% increase in downloads, and 15% growth in consumer spend (excluding third-party Android) year-over-year in 2019, this looks set to continue in 2020. Outside of games, this growth was mostly driven by the Photo & Video and Entertainment categories.