A messaging app launched in the aftermath of Japan's 2011 earthquake and tsunami is heading for a possible dual listing in Tokyo and New York as it jostles for space in an increasingly imaginative market.
Combining instant messaging with shopping, gaming and other features such as letting users send each other cute cartoon "stickers", Line is hugely popular in Japan, particularly among teenagers.
But competition is fierce in emerging markets.
Its plans for a reported Y9.8 billion ($A103.44 million) Tokyo listing will help - coming after February's rush of deal-making, including Facebook's purchase of WhatsApp for as much as $US19 billion ($A20.56 billion) and Japanese online retailer Rakuten's $US900 million spend on Viber.
Other rivals include WeChat, owned by Chinese giant Tencent Inc, and South Korea's Kakao Talk - both of which have also developed their own cartoon "emoticon" messages.
"Competition among messaging applications is heating up worldwide," said Hitoshi Sato, senior analyst at Japanese telecom giant NTT group's research arm InfoCom.
"Line's challenge is how to diversify its sources of profit in the future."
Sato said a roughly $US10 billion value for Line was reasonable given that its finances eclipse some of Japan's most successful smartphone game developers.
Line, which says it has more than 400 million registered users in Japan and other parts of Asia, lets users make free calls, send instant messages and post photos or short videos.
It combines attributes from Facebook, Skype and WhatsApp.
About 88 per cent of Japanese smartphone owners use messaging apps including Line, according to a survey by the Communications and Information network Association of Japan.
Line's messaging service was launched in 2011 by the Japanese unit of South Korean internet service provider Naver after the quake-tsunami tragedy damaged telecoms infrastructure nationwide, forcing millions of people in Japan to resort to online resources.
But boosting its user base alone is not enough to generate profit, say analysts. More than 60 per cent of its revenues come from games, but what differentiates Line from some of its rivals is its stickers.
Users can post these to friends after purchasing them from Line's online store for a fee of around $1-$2. Many feature a rabbit called Cony and her bear boyfriend Brown, allowing users to express themselves with pictures as much as words.
A new service launched this year allows people to create their own stickers and sell them to each other on the platform, for which Line collects a 50 per cent commission.
Neha Dharia, senior analyst at technology research firm Ovum, said in a report that the listing "makes perfect sense as it will not only raise its profile further in the market, but it will also provide them with adequate funds to strengthen their product offering".
Analysts warn messaging app users are fickle.
"At the moment, Line has good revenue from game and stickers. But the other messaging apps can easily and quickly imitate and take the place of Line's current position," Sato said.
Line gave no further details on its IPO, including the possible size of the deal.
Dow Jones Newswires has cited a source as saying Line could list in Tokyo as soon as the northern autumn.
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