The account of the CEO was created in July this year, indicating that the platform would have been launched around this time. (Image: Financial Express Online/Bulbul Dhawan)
Made in India Twitter: Twitter apparently has a new made in India alternative! That’s right. There is a “Swadeshi” version of Twitter called Tooter, and it is heavily inspired by the famous microblogging site. While the platform’s colour scheme is very similar to that of Twitter, its layout and interface is a cross between Twitter’s look and Facebook’s timeline. The website is gaining popularity due to its pitch as a Swadeshi alternative to Twitter, and it is aided by the fact that the similar interface of the platform is easier to use for people already familiar with social media.
Account creation on the platform is similar to that on Twitter and is based on username. Once in, users can follow other Tooter users, and view their posts on the feed. On this platform, the posts are called Toots instead of Tweets. It has a web platform and an Android app, but does not have an iOS app at the moment. The logo is a white conch on a blue background, much like the white bird on blue background logo of Twitter.
The platform seems to have verified accounts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, along with veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan and India skipper Virat Kohli. However, it is possible that the platform might be directly sourcing the content from Twitter. The suspicion is stronger due to the fact that all the four accounts have the same posts as that on Twitter, and the only account being followed by them on Tooter is that of Tooter CEO.
Upon the creation of an account, as done by Bulbul Dhawan of Financial Express Online, the account was found to be automatically following three accounts – one is the CEO of Tooter, another is RVAIDYA 2000 (a teacher interested in learning) and the third is a News bot. Of these, the automatic following of RVAIDYA 2000 could be in a bid to inorganically increase the follower count of the account.
The account of the CEO was created in July this year, indicating that the platform would have been launched around this time.
Moreover, in order to get a verified account on Tooter, a user needs to upgrade their account to PRO.
The account is based on an opensource code, and its about page states that it is bringing about a Swadeshi Andolan 2.0. “We believe that India should have a Swadeshi social network. Without one we are just a digital colony of the American Twitter India Company, no different than what we were under the British East India Company. Tooter is our Swadeshi Andolan 2.0,” the platform states.
Notably, the news bot’s posts are linked extensively to Swarajyamag.com.
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