Snapchat controversy: Did Evan Spiegel really say India is poor?

Snapchat is once again in the news but this time not for good reasons. The company CEO Evan Spiegel has been targeted by many in India, because he allegedly called India poor. But the interesting bit about the whole Snapchat fiasco is that no one clearly knows if Spiegel indeed said that or not. Probably he did say that Snapchat didn't want to focus on countries like India and Spain that were poor. But there is no direct statement.

It is rather confusing, this whole Snapchat fiasco. So, here we try to cut through all that you have heard so far and attempt to clarify what exactly is the whole issue.

1. What did Snapchat CEO say?

So far nothing. Technically, Spiegel hasn't spoken about India in public. As Variety on Saturday reported, the "poor India" statement actually come from Snapchat's ex-employee Anthony Pompliano. Anthony, who was fired from Snapchat, told the website that Spiegel in September 2015 had told him that "the app is only for rich people. I don't want to expand into poor countries like India and Spain".

Since it is an indirect statement, its authenticity cannot be trusted at once. Also one should note the source of the statement i.e. Anthony Pompliano who is an ex-employee of Snapchat. He claims that he was fired by the company in just three weeks because he refused to spill the secrets of Facebook, his previous employer, to Snapchat. He also sued Snapchat in January this year claiming that company had not revealed the real reason for his termination and that was hindering his attempt of finding other jobs.

Also Read: Snapchat fiasco shows India is not just poor but some Indians are also stupid

But at the same time, there is report by The Information, a US based tech news site that is widely respected for its accurate reporting. Although The Information doesn't confirm the exact statement that has been attributed to Spiegel, it says that the Snapchat CEO indeed made remarks about India that were similar.

2. What is Snapchat?

Now, that there is this fiasco over Snapchat CEO and the app, do you know what is Snapchat? Well, in case you don't, it is a widely-used mobile app that lets you share photos and videos with your friends and family. The principle concept of the app is that the shared pictures and messages are available only for a short time before they become invisible.

3. How Indians have reacted?

Hyper-reaction like always! Totally triggered. Of late, Indian users of a service reacting too fast to too little. The rating of Snapchat on the Apple iOS app store has gone down to 1 from 5. Many have uninstalled the app and many have slammed the app and its CEO on social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook. Twitter is flooded with #boycottsnapchat and here are few of the outbursts to be seen.

Dear @evanspiegel we are the biggest market in any country.???Will pray for your speedy recovery.Get well soon boy! @Snapchat #boycottsnapchat pic.twitter.com/l3FhPLwDir

- Pavneet Kaur (@pavneet_sudan_) April 16, 2017

Signing up with Snapchat wouldn't have been possible without an email, Email created by "V.A. Shiva Ayyadurai" - An Indian. #BoycottSnapchat- Virender Sehwag (@VirenderSehweg) April 16, 2017

4. What it has to do with Snapdeal?

Now, this is an app that has been caught in the middle of its all. Just because the name of the app has Snap in it. Both Snapdeal and Snapchat have "Snap" word in the names and as a result many people have got confused and uninstalled Snapdeal instead of Snapchat. This is the second time Snapdeal is facing flak on social media. Earlier in 2015, the company was targeted by users over the intolerance remark made by its then brand ambassador Aamir Khan.

5. Has Snapchat said anything on the controversy?

Actually yes. The company has denied that its CEO called India poor. The company apparently has sent an official statement to several websites, claiming that these are false accusations. "This is ridiculous. Obviously Snapchat is for everyone! It's available worldwide to download for free."