Facebook-Jio tie-up a non-exclusive collaboration, not an integration

MUMBAI: Facebook is collaborating with Jio Platforms and not integrating to develop a super app in the immediate future, both the companies said on Wednesday. For now, the focus will only be on Jio Mart and rolling out commerce services targeted at small businesses.

Both companies will continue to be independent entities with their own business models, said Anshuman Thakur, head of strategy at Reliance Jio Infocomm. “It is not a JV. We will collaborate on areas where we see benefits of working together and at the same time we will compete in areas aligned with our respective business models and suite of products and services,” Thakur said.

Both Jio and Facebook are present across an ecosystem of apps and services targeted at internet users as well as small businesses, including Facebook’s marketplace offering. There were expectations that the companies may plan a super-app on the lines of Chinese giant WeChat which is a messaging and ecommerce platform rolled into one. The companies will continue to be non-exclusive in future collaborations.