New SA app lets users get help from celeb 'gurus'

Johannesburg - Despite it still being in its infancy, several SA celebs have downloaded an app geared towards getting advice from "gurus".

Timon, pronounced 'Time-On' was the brainchild of its Cape Town-based founder and CEO, William Mellor, and at just two weeks old has the likes of celebrities such as Afrikaans rapper Jack Parow, DJ Euphonic, music duo Goldfish, former Springboks Bobby Skinstad and John Smit, and model Kerry McGregor sign up as active users.

Mellor said that Timon offers fans and users a platform to engage with "Gurus" or industry experts to get information over an instant messaging chat interface, at a fee payable to the expert, depending on their price.

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"The app gives users the opportunity to engage directly with people they follow and the Gurus who want to engage with their audience. Celebrities for example want to engage with their fans, but don't always have the platform to do it," Mellor told Fin24.

In just a fortnight, 50 Gurus have registered on Timon with close to 600 users who engage with them and while big names have joined the platform, Mellor said that it had been popular with lawyers.

"Think of how costly it is to book an appointment with a lawyer, even if it is just to seek an answer to one legal question," Mellor said.

Timon offers users the opportunity to engage with experts by paying a fee - depending on the expert and his/her rate - per 6 minutes with prices ranging depending on expertise, influence and rating within the app.

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"We've seen that people are actually willing to pay money to engage with people for their own needs," he said.

Mellor said that he coined the name of the app, Timon from the phrase "Time Is Money".

"The app works simply on the phrase: You don't always have the time and neither do they," Mellor told Fin24.

Timon is available as a free download for iOS at the App Store and for Android on the Google Play store.

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