IMVU and Kin Partner to Deliver Native Crypto Experiences in 3D Social Networks


The world’s largest avatar-based social network integrates token to give users the ability to transact in the Kin Ecosystem

Every month, users on the IMVU platform spend an average of 55 minutes per day customizing avatars, connecting with friends, and having shared experiences in a virtual community. These users generate more than 15 million transactions, spending nearly ten billion monthly in the platform’s existing native currency, IMVU Credits.

As CEO, Daren Tsui, explains, “Virtual worlds will be the next generation social platform connecting people in a way that exceeds both face-to-face connection and the curated feeds of Facebook and Instagram.”

Of four million users, more than 50,000 people earn money on IMVU by creating virtual products, selling them for IMVU credits and converting those credits into fiat money. Now, IMVU will integrate the Kin SDK and marketplace to give its user base native ways to earn cryptocurrency in the broader digital world.

Complementary currencies

The exciting partnership offers IMVU’s massive, highly active user base native ways to earn Kin. The Kin cryptocurrency will work alongside the IMVU Credit system to enable transactions with other digital offerings in the Kin ecosystem.

The partnership creates a new way for IMVU users to do more in and around the IMVU ecosystem. Now, IMVU users will be able to not only earn IMVU Credits, but also Kin tokens that can be spent on an ever growing number of offers from other ecosystem partners in the Kin Marketplace.

Strategy: Aligning Audiences

At the heart of IMVU’s engagement is live chat and interaction with other users from around the world. IMVU’s user demographics are highly complementary to those of our first ecosystem partner, Kik. IMVU says more than half of its users are also Kik users — creating the potential for cross-platform promotional opportunities down the line.

The similarities between IMVU Credits and Kik Points, an in-app currency previously used in the popular chat app, make Kin a natural fit in the IMVU environment, and Kin will benefit from learning alongside a partner that has already monetized their marketplace so successfully.

It’s estimated that males comprise 90% of people who currently hold cryptocurrency. Nearly 70% of IMVU’s users are women, creating a huge opportunity for Kin to unlock adoption of cryptocurrency among an active, vibrant community of female creators.

IMVU’s economy

IMVU is the rare social app with a profitable product offering, double digit growth rates, and over 15 million transactions taking place with IMVU Credits every month.

IMVU Credits act as the existing currency of the IMVU economy in much the same way Kik Points operated within the Kik application:

Users receive an initial amount of “bonus” IMVU Credits upon registering and entering the platform;
From there, they can buy more IMVU Credits (using fiat currency) or earn them by completing tasks, taking surveys, or engaging in certain activities in the app.
IMVU users can also become ‘Creators’ to contribute customizable avatars and other items to IMVU’s massive catalog of virtual goods — currently over 40 million items and counting. Creators sell those virtual goods for IMVU Credits, which they can then convert back into fiat money.

Kin will co-exist alongside this existing transaction system as a new way to incentivize participation in the IMVU community — creating a model for how communities with existing, successful monetization strategies can use Kin to accelerate network-effect benefits across their platform.

“We really look to our Creators’ success as a mark of the platform’s success,” says Victor Zaud, senior vice president of marketing at IMVU. “Our Creators are incredibly creative, so we try hard to focus on empowering them further through content programs that reward their content creation.”
Kin for IMVU Users

Once users activate their wallets, they will be able to use Kin to both 1) continue to earn Kin through a number of partner experiences or 2) engage in and spend their Kin on a broad number of offers.

Since nearly half of IMVU’s user base transacts (buying/selling) on the IMVU platform every month, the community represents a captive market for Kin adoption and use, and our organizations will work together to incentivize wallet activation among IMVU users. Activated users will have out-of-the-box access to branded experiences in the Kin Marketplace, as well. As with IMVU Credits, they will also be able to earn Kin through polls and other activities or e-giftcard offers from brands.

Looking forward, growing together

Working with IMVU is another example of Kin partnering with the biggest and best community-driven apps and platforms out there: IMVU is one of the top grossing apps in the Apple and Google Play stores, and it’s seeing explosive growth on mobile — with downloads up 91% on iOS and 62% on Android YoY in 2017. Users upload 6,000 new virtual products to the site every day.

Together, our organizations intend to create the optimal model for using crypto to accelerate engagement between Creators and their users in a high-touch virtual landscape with an existing economic framework. As we explore new ways to drive mass adoption of cryptocurrency, there is the potential for a deeper integration of Kin that will unlock opportunities to spend the token inside of IMVU (not just the marketplace), and Kin could become a medium of exchange between Creators and their users.

IMVU already helps Creators to capitalize on lucrative opportunities to create products and craft experiences that facilitate relationships, friendships, and bonding on the platform. Kin will amplify the creativity of IMVU’s users which will help us evolve Kin into the world’s most useful, valuable currency for virtual communities and shared experiences.