TikTok Owner ByteDance Increasing Indian Operations: Reports

ByteDance is reportedly opening its second corporate entity in India to provide information technology services to all of its platforms worldwide, the latest sign that the Chinese tech unicorn is expanding its global footprint.

The entity will also deal will content generated across ByteDance’s various platforms and problems it faces across different geographies, India’s Economic Times reported Monday, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The sources told the Economic Times that ByteDance is expected to file a formal request with local regulators in the next few weeks.

The Beijing-based company will also transfer data and technology to India and increase its workforce there, the report quoted one of the sources as saying.

India is one of the key markets for ByteDance’s popular short video app TikTok, with nearly one-third of the app’s total downloads coming from the South Asian country, where the company also runs the social networking app Helo.

The news comes at a time when ByteDance is reportedly moving the decision-making and research capabilities of its international businesses out of its home country, China.

As a result of its March management reshuffle, ByteDance founder and CEO Zhang Yiming will concentrate on building a global management team, with the latest example of the strategy being the appointment of former Walt Disney streaming head Kevin Mayer as ByteDance Chief Operating Officer mainly responsible for driving the company’s global development. Mayer has also been simultaneously named as TikTok CEO.

 

– This article originally appeared on Caixin Global.