SEOUL, April 24 (Reuters) – Crowds of people stroll seemingly aimlessly in the front yard of a museum in central Seoul, bending their heads toward their smartphones and silently passing each other as their fingers frantically tap the screen.
South Korean startup Viva Republica’s financial services app Toss allows users to complete tasks like walking 10,000 steps, subscribing to social media, and tapping the screen when other users are nearby, up to 10 times per hour. You can earn cents.
The viral campaign puts Toss at the forefront of a trend for companies to acquire users through loyalty apps that offer cash or points, which are growing in popularity in an economy with high youth unemployment and skyrocketing inflation. .
According to a recent study by job portal Incruit, 3 out of 4 adults earn cash through such applications.
Paek Na-young, 27, an office worker, said, “I’ve only earned 150 won so far, but I want to continue using the app to buy coffee and make payments.”
According to Viva Republica, nearly 4.4 million users have used Toss’ cash-giving in-app feature since its launch in January, with a 30% increase in opening the app on their phones.
Han Sung-jae, a 77-year-old retiree, said he has earned about 50,000 won ($37.91) so far through the Toss app.
“My daughter works nearby and told me she could make more money here because there are a lot of people here,” he said outside the Seoul Museum of Art.
Experts said the trend shows that people are working harder to overcome increasingly dire economic conditions.
Consumer price inflation will reach 5.1% in 2022, the highest since 1998, with food and transport prices rising 5.9% and 9.7% respectively.
According to Statistics Office data, about 497,000 people between the ages of 15 and 29 were out of work in February and said they were not actively looking for work.
Some experts warn that exchanging data for the opportunity to earn pennies could result in the sharing of sensitive personal information with third parties.
Lee Eun-hee, Professor of Consumer Studies at Inha University, said: “It would be wise to consider both sides of the coin.”
(1 dollar = 1,318.79 won)
(This article has been resubmitted with the correct company name in paragraph 2)
Reported by Hyunsu Yim. Additional reporting by Ju-min Park.Edited by Christopher Cushing
Our criteria: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
