KakaoTalk, the most popular mobile messenger platform in South Korea, had its text-to-speech service disabled for three days on Aug. 12-14, it reported Sunday.
The messenger application's operator Kakao Corp. confirmed that the iOS version of the app distributed on Aug. 12 had a critical error when using this function, and the problem was fixed two days later. It said the function is available with the latest update for the app.
But the momentary flaw in the system had severely hindered users with visual impairments, particularly since KakaoTalk is by far the most widely-used messenger app here.
According to the local research and analysis firm Wise App Retail Goods, KakaoTalk recorded a monthly average of 47.7 million active users in the first half of this year, more than any other mobile app among Koreans.
Yang Nam-gyu, a former director of the Korea Blind Union, told local media that it was "a near catastrophe" for people with visual impairments. He said the error made it impossible for them to use the application, and that he was forced to write using the speech function on different apps.
minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com