(Yicai Global) Jan. 6 -- WeChat, China’s most popular social messaging app, logged a 13 percent jump last year from the year before in the number of daily active users of its mini programs, which are mini applications that provide advanced features such as e-commerce, task management and virtual store tours.

There were 450 million DAUs in 2021, said Zeng Ming, a lecturer at the WeChat Open Class 2022 held in Guangzhou today. This year mini programs will provide more ways of connecting with hardware devices and there will be more of a focus on commercialization and monetization in the future, he added.

There were over three million developers of WeChat mini programs last year, Zeng said at the annual event which brings together representatives of internet companies, small and medium-sized businesses, product developers and content creators.

Mini apps for medical and government services are particularly popular, Zeng said. More than 700 million people used mini programs to book medical appointments last year and over 100 million people access government services through mini apps every day. Collaborative tools, like Tencent Document, are also popular, and proved very useful during the heavy rainfall in central Henan province last July to collate rescue information.

WeChat’s mobile payment service WeChat Pay will offer more than CNY10 billion (USD1.6 billion) in subsidies over the next three years to help upgrade micro and small e-stores, said Zhang Ying, head of WeChat Pay.

Tencent’s video feed WeChat Channels, introduced two years ago, has already developed into multiple forms, supporting long videos, livestreaming, online sales and even editing, said lecturer Zhang Xiaochao. It might start charging a fee for some services in the future, he added.

Thanks to the wide range of services offered and its all-encompassing business outreach, the number of monthly active users on WeChat reached 1.3 billion in the third quarter last year.

Editor: Kim Taylor