Customer Reviews (100)

D. Mac • 2025-03-25T01:26:38.980Z

I love Epoch Times for informative, trustworthy, unbiased news. The app makes it easy to keep up.

Melanie Kadair • 2025-03-23T18:50:20.595Z

My primary news source for *truthful* news, health matters, and, well, everything else.

James Major • 2025-03-23T12:03:45.396Z

i want the ability to disable this.

Summary of Key Insights

The Epoch Times app enjoys a generally positive sentiment, with a large majority of users giving it 5-star ratings. Users appreciate the app for its informative, trustworthy, and unbiased news coverage, particularly its reporting on topics often overlooked by mainstream media. However, significant issues exist, primarily related to subscription management (billing errors, access problems despite active subscriptions), app stability (crashing, freezing, bugs after updates), and usability (font size adjustment, layout). These negative aspects, while affecting a smaller portion of users, cause considerable frustration and warrant immediate attention. The app's perceived "truthful" and "unbiased" reporting is a major selling point, but technical and subscription-related problems undermine this positive perception.

  • Overall Sentiment: Positive, but with significant concerns.
  • Key Strengths: Trusted news source, unbiased reporting (according to users), comprehensive coverage, convenient audio feature.
  • Key Weaknesses: Subscription issues, app stability, usability flaws.
  • Overall Rating (Based on Score Distribution): Approximately 4.4/5 (Weighted average calculated from the score distribution).
  • Score Distribution: 5-star (78%), 4-star (4%), 3-star (2%), 2-star (2%), 1-star (14%).

Data & Methodology Overview

  • Data Sample Size: 100 reviews.
  • Time Frame: Not explicitly stated, but assumed to be recent based on the version number (2.54.11) and the presence of date-specific comments (e.g., Jan 20, 2025).
  • Analysis Methods: Sentiment analysis (manual assessment based on review text), keyword extraction (identifying recurring words and phrases), issue categorization (grouping reviews based on common problems).

Key User Pain Points

  • Subscription Issues:
    • Billing errors (being charged after cancellation, unexpected charges).
    • Access denied despite active subscription.
    • Inability to resubscribe.
    • Lack of refund options.
  • App Stability & Bugs:
    • Crashing.
    • Freezing videos.
    • Menu overlaying articles, rendering them unreadable after updates.
    • Search function not working.
    • App not opening.
  • Usability Problems:
    • Inability to adjust font size globally.
    • Confusing layout (e.g., top headlines not at the top).
    • Lack of filtering options for regional news (Australian, UK, Canadian mixed with US).
    • Excessive advertisements (for non-subscribers).

Frequently Requested Features

  • Global Font Size Adjustment: Ability to change font size for all articles at once.
  • Improved Layout: More intuitive organization of content, especially on the homepage and TV tab.
  • Regional News Filtering: Option to filter news by country (Australia, UK, Canada).
  • Comment Section: Ability for readers to share comments at the bottom of articles.
  • Unlimited Article Sharing (for Paid Users): Allow paid users to share articles with other paid users.
  • Offline Reading: Ability to download and read articles offline.

Strengths and Positive Aspects

  • Trustworthy News: Users perceive the Epoch Times as a reliable and accurate source of information, especially compared to mainstream media.
  • Unbiased Reporting: Many users believe the app provides unbiased news coverage, offering a different perspective.
  • Comprehensive Coverage: The app covers a wide range of topics, including US, China, world news, arts, culture, health, and lifestyle.
  • Convenient Audio Feature: The ability to listen to articles is highly valued.
  • Informative and Educational: Users find the content insightful and helpful for staying informed.
  • Good Interface: Some users find the app fast and easy to use (although others disagree).
  • Straight News: Appreciation for news without drama and hype.

Prioritized Action Recommendations

  • High Priority:
    • Fix Subscription Issues: Implement robust subscription management to prevent billing errors, ensure access for paid users, and provide clear cancellation/refund procedures. Address the specific billing issues reported urgently.
    • Address App Stability: Resolve crashing, freezing, and bug-related problems. Thoroughly test updates before release to prevent new issues.
    • Resolve Menu Overlay Bug: Immediately fix the issue where the menu overlays articles, rendering them unreadable.
  • Medium Priority:
    • Improve Usability: Implement global font size adjustment, improve layout intuitiveness, and add regional news filtering options.
    • Enhance Search Functionality: Fix the broken search function and provide clear instructions for bug reporting.
  • Low Priority:
    • Consider Comment Section: Evaluate the feasibility of adding a comment section, considering moderation requirements.
    • Explore Unlimited Article Sharing (Paid Users): Investigate the possibility of allowing paid users to share articles with other paid users.

Opportunities for Startup Ideas

  • News Aggregator with Bias Detection: A platform that aggregates news from various sources and provides a "bias score" for each article, helping users understand different perspectives.
  • Subscription Management Service: A service that helps users manage their subscriptions across multiple apps, ensuring accurate billing and easy cancellation.
  • Personalized News Filtering: An app that allows users to create highly customized news feeds based on their interests, location, and preferred sources.

Trends and Observations

  • Strong Positive Sentiment Driven by Perceived Truthfulness: The app's core value proposition is its perceived accuracy and lack of bias, which resonates strongly with a significant portion of users.
  • Technical Issues Undermine Positive Sentiment: Technical problems and subscription issues are a major source of frustration and can quickly erode user trust.
  • Recurring Complaints About Subscription Management: Subscription-related problems are a consistent theme, suggesting a systemic issue that needs to be addressed urgently.
  • Desire for More Control Over Content Presentation: Users want more control over how the news is presented, including font size, layout, and regional filtering.

Conclusion

The Epoch Times app has a strong foundation based on its reputation for trustworthy news. However, technical issues, particularly related to subscriptions and app stability, are hindering its potential and frustrating users. Addressing these issues should be the top priority. Improving usability and adding requested features would further enhance the user experience and solidify the app's position as a trusted news source. Ignoring these problems risks alienating users and damaging the app's reputation. The recommendation is to focus on bug fixes and subscription management improvements immediately, followed by usability enhancements.

Original App Link

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.theepochtimes.news