From Messaging App to Live streaming and NFT – the CEO of Tango Opens Up About His Journey

Uri Raz, CEO at Tango, tells us about live streaming and NFT.

Tell us about you, your career, how you founded Tango.

Uri Raz: I came from a family with little means. I worked hard to excel at university and started my entrepreneurial journey soon after, and I was lucky to find success early on. I founded Tango as an innovative messaging and video chat app in 2009. It became very popular globally over the years, but it too had to adjust as the market changed. So in 2018, we took our quality video technology and pivoted into the exciting live-streaming space. Already a $70B market in China, live-streaming is a growing phenomenon that is transitioning to the western world. Today, Tango is the largest western company in the UGC (user-generated content) live-streaming space.

How does Tango innovate?

Uri Raz: I’m an engineer myself, and I have a huge passion for new products and technologies. Tango always looks to innovate and find new ways to help our users unlock their creativity and find their audience. We are very agile and run frequent development sprints, delivering new releases to the app stores bi-monthly in order to continue being a leader in this rapidly developing market. Our main priority continues to focus on live UGC, video quality, and supporting the creators’ economy.

How did the coronavirus pandemic affect your business?

Uri Raz: We were growing at an incredible pace before Covid hit – but we’ve also experienced immense growth and usage since the pandemic, as global restrictions and limited socializing left many at home with no way to perform, earn, or socialize. We’re so proud that Tango can offer anyone in the world a place to create with real live interactions and meaningful connections.

What are the current trends in the social media industry, and how fast are they changing?

Uri Raz: Tango takes social media to the next level, offering live content and connections with no ads or interruptions, all while respecting user privacy. With current live-streaming trends shifting away from advertising, Tango leads the way by relying on micro-transactions as its core business model. If previous generations want to survive, they’ll have to do it too.

Who is the target audience of Tango? Who is a Liver?

Uri Raz: Tango aims to be the ultimate place for all people to create content, engage socially, and connect live – that means everyone is our audience and everyone is a potential Liver. We believe everyone in the world has a talent. Our all-in-one platform helps them monetize their talents and build their business.

Tell us more about the monetization process on your platform.

Uri Raz: Tango supports micro-transactions as the basis of its Livers’ monetization. We believe that talent should be rewarded, and we know that people feel better when they support their favorite performers and connect with them more personally. So, our aim is to minimize unnecessary friction and allow everyone to enjoy live content and support their favorite creators with as much, or as little, as they feel comfortable giving.

How do you see the future of Tango? What are the next steps for the company?

Uri Raz: We are developing some exciting new features and looking into a few potential acquisitions in both AR and NFT technologies to boost our abilities and better support creators on Tango. Looking towards 2022, we expect to see much more diversity in the content Tango offers, from gamification to digital trading, as we continue to provide groundbreaking new tools in the live-streaming space.

Your website?

https://www.tango.me/