Hike ID to facilitate chatting without phone numbers

Local messaging platform Hike Messenger on Tuesday announced the launch of Hike ID, an identity that removes the need for sharing your phone number so your privacy is guarded, and makes searching for contacts easier.

The rollout follows direct response to feedback from Hike users, wherein they expressed their dislike to share their phone numbers, particularly to safeguard their privacy.

In a survey of over 1 million Hike users, 69 percent of the respondents said they'd like to talk to people without sharing their phone numbers first and over 72 percent said they want to skip the hassle of saving someone's number before talking to them. Therefore, Hike ID was launched to keep users' phone numbers private, while enabling easy messaging and calling.

"There has always been a big need from our users for features which enable them to have more control over their relationships online like Hidden Mode and customized privacy controls for profile pictures, timeline posts and status updates. These features have been extremely popular and Hike ID is the logical next step for us to make this value proposition even stronger by enabling easier discovery and control while connecting with others," said Pathik Shah, VP Product at Hike.

The feature will be rolled out first for Hike's Android user base, following which it will be introduced on iOS in the near future.