Cape Town - Mobile social network Mxit has appointed Francois Swart as its CEO, after he has been acting CEO since October 2012.
Shareholder Paul Harris said in a press release issued on Friday: “Francois has been the de facto CEO for almost a year now and has the respect and trust of his management team, staff and the shareholders."
Said Swart: "What we have lacked in the past is a strong smart phone presence, but that is changing.... South Africans spend more time on Mxit than any other social network.”
He added that Mxit came into being at about the same time as Facebook, and long before Whatsapp, BBM or WeChat.
"Mxit has been the chosen chat platform for the South African youth for the last eight years and it still is. We have an incredible technology platform and handle roughly the same volume of messages as Twitter does worldwide," said Swart.
The company now aims to convince the business community that it is a powerful platform to reach the youth of South Africa, said Swart.
Mxit has seen some remarkable brand partnerships arise since giving the market ‘Mxit Launch’ - a free, Web-based drag-and-drop app builder.
Any brand or organisation is now able to build and manage its community on Mxit, regardless of their technical expertise. Big brands such as Vodacom, SPAR, BlackBerry, Unilever, Mainstay and KFC have used Mxit Launch and joined the platform.
In the run-up to the 2013 elections, political parties such as the ANC and Agang SA have joined rival DA, which has been on Mxit since 2012.
Shareholder Paul Harris said in a press release issued on Friday: “Francois has been the de facto CEO for almost a year now and has the respect and trust of his management team, staff and the shareholders."
Said Swart: "What we have lacked in the past is a strong smart phone presence, but that is changing.... South Africans spend more time on Mxit than any other social network.”
He added that Mxit came into being at about the same time as Facebook, and long before Whatsapp, BBM or WeChat.
"Mxit has been the chosen chat platform for the South African youth for the last eight years and it still is. We have an incredible technology platform and handle roughly the same volume of messages as Twitter does worldwide," said Swart.
The company now aims to convince the business community that it is a powerful platform to reach the youth of South Africa, said Swart.
Mxit has seen some remarkable brand partnerships arise since giving the market ‘Mxit Launch’ - a free, Web-based drag-and-drop app builder.
Any brand or organisation is now able to build and manage its community on Mxit, regardless of their technical expertise. Big brands such as Vodacom, SPAR, BlackBerry, Unilever, Mainstay and KFC have used Mxit Launch and joined the platform.
In the run-up to the 2013 elections, political parties such as the ANC and Agang SA have joined rival DA, which has been on Mxit since 2012.