Turkish gov’t launches ‘native and national’ WhatsApp-like messaging app
ANKARA
The Turkish government has launched a “native and national version” of WhatsApp dubbed the “PTT Messenger application.” The program will first be used by state institutions before being opened to the public.
Developed by Turkey’s national post directorate, PTT, the new instant messaging application uses “100 percent local and new software,” Deputy Minister Bekir Bozdağ said on Feb. 5 after a cabinet meeting in the capital Ankara.
“All public institutions will use this. Later it will opened up for the use of citizens. It is a kind of ‘native and national’ version of WhatsApp. None of the data will be stored in a server so it will not be possible to access it. A more secure system than WhatsApp has been developed,” Bozdağ said.
Ahead of the cabinet meeting at the Prime Ministry’s Çankaya Palace earlier on Feb. 5, Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım was recorded by the press speaking via live video conference on PTT Messenger with military commanders stationed in the southern province of Hatay.
“The visuals are very clear, the image has a high resolution. This shows that [PTT Messenger] is a very good product,” Yıldırım said.
