[graue]

> Snapchat, which thrived partially due to 'offensive' content

Assuming you mean sexting, I think the percentage of sexually explicit images sent on Snapchat has been wildly exaggerated — by tech journalists looking for clicks, and by older folks not in Snapchat's target market who don't really get the point. Snapchat's appeal for everyday, non-sexual use seems to go over the heads of most tech people I know, but has been described eloquently by, e.g., Nathan Jurgenson[1] and Dustin Curtis[2].

Porn on Tumblr and sexts on Snapchat make for interesting headlines, but I'd hesitate to credit either as a major reason for the platform's success without actual numbers on its prevalence. To my knowledge those numbers don't exist.

1. http://thenewinquiry.com/essays/pics-and-it-didnt-happen/

2. http://dcurt.is/photos-for-communication

[graue]

Just found out some numbers do exist thanks to Survata: http://survata.com/blog/is-snapchat-only-used-for-sexting-we...

Their conclusion: a smaller percentage of Snapchat users use the service to sext than text-messaging users.