Case study · Consumer messaging · White-label app
White-label secure messenger app for iOS and Android, from the Ethora engine to a branded build in a week
A privacy-focused venture wanted its own messenger under its own brand, with groups, voice, calls, disappearing messages and rewards for good conversation, without building a messaging stack. Ethora delivered a branded iOS and Android app from its engine in the first week, then the features that made it theirs.
By the numbers
The project at a glance
1 week
to a working iOS and Android app under the customer’s brand
Config
not code: logo, name, colours, coin and default room set per app
4
weeks to add email sign-in, referrals, in-app purchases and the first 1:1 calls
86 / 0
regression scenarios passed / failed before the version 1.0 release
This project ran from late 2021 to 2022 on the earlier version of the Ethora engine. The white-label app, chat server, push and rewards described here are part of today’s Ethora white-label chat app and React Native SDK, rebuilt and extended since.
Overview
A private messenger with its own name on it
The customer was a European venture building HABLAR, a consumer messenger for people who want private group and one-to-one conversations, with a small in-app economy that rewards useful messages and invitations.
The challenge. A credible messenger needs a lot before it is usable: a real-time chat server, push notifications, media, voice messages, invitations, moderation, and apps in both stores. Building that from scratch would have taken the venture many months before it could test its own ideas: disappearing messages, screenshot alerts, calls and rewards.
The approach. The customer licensed the Ethora engine, both the mobile app codebase and the server side, and had us restyle and extend it. The first branded build came straight from the engine’s white-label checklist, so the project spent its time on the features that made the product different, not on the messaging basics.
Requirements
What the venture needed, and how Ethora met it
Each requirement is tagged by what came from the Ethora engine and what was built for this project.
A branded app in both stores, fast
The engine’s white-label checklist does the work: create the app and its keys in the admin dashboard, issue the app’s own coin, set up Google and Apple sign-in, then swap the logo, name, colours, coin name and default room in configuration. The first branded iOS and Android build ran in the first week of the project. The customer’s designers then restyled the screens to their own prototype. See the white-label chat app.
Group and one-to-one chat that feels complete
A default room for every new user, user-created groups that stay private until shared, direct messages from any message or profile, typing indicators, cached history with load-more, and a chat list split into Groups and Private tabs. Room owners and admins can rename, reorder or delete rooms and ban users. Push notifications open the right room.
Voice messages, photos and video
Record, preview and play voice messages, send images and videos with upload progress, open them full screen with video controls, and save files to the phone.
Invitations by QR code and link
Any room and any profile can be shared as a QR code or a short link. Links open the branded app directly, or the right store page if it is not installed yet, through per-app deep-link settings on Ethora’s link service, so the customer’s users never land in a generic app.
One-to-one voice and video calls
WebRTC calls between two users, first as an alpha on both platforms and then on iOS and Android builds about two weeks later. Today Ethora offers calls as its voice and video call API.
Privacy features users can see
Disappearing messages on a timer and an alert in the chat when someone takes a screenshot, both built and switched on for this app, plus no location sharing, an optional phone number, and email sign-in for users who did not want a social login.
Rewards for good conversation
Every user gets an in-app wallet at sign-up, a welcome bonus and a daily login reward. Anyone can tip a useful message with coins, which the whole room sees on the message. Invite codes reward both the inviter and the friend; referrals are now a standard Ethora feature. Coins can also be bought in the app through Google Play and Apple in-app purchases, validated on the server.
Architecture
One React Native app on the Ethora server stack
The app and the server side were both licensed from Ethora and extended for this product. Today the same stack runs in Ethora’s cloud, on a dedicated or self-hosted server, or from a marketplace.
Where this stack runs
The outcome
A complete branded messenger, with the time spent on what made it different
The venture went from first call to a branded iOS and Android app within weeks, then spent the rest of the project on its own ideas: calls, disappearing messages, screenshot alerts, referrals and in-app purchases. Before the version 1.0 release, the app passed 86 of 86 applicable regression scenarios with no failures, and it launched in the App Store and Google Play.
The same route is open to any company that wants a messenger or community app under its own name: start from the white-label app and the React Native SDK, and spend the budget on the features that make it yours.
FAQ
Do we get both the app and the chat server?
Yes. Ethora covers the React Native app, the messaging server, the API, push and deep links. You can run the server in Ethora’s cloud, on a dedicated server, or self-host it.
Can we add our own features on top?
Yes. This project added calls, disappearing messages, screenshot alerts, referral codes and in-app purchases on top of the engine. Our team can build them for you, or your developers can work on the codebase.
Does Ethora support voice and video calls?
Yes, through the voice and video call API.
Can users invite others with a QR code or link?
Yes. Rooms and profiles can be shared as QR codes or short links that open your branded app, or its store page if it is not installed.
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Launch your own branded messenger
A white-label iOS and Android app with the chat server included, ready for the features that make it yours.
