TikTok May Relaunch in India Soon as Bytedance Plans India Comeback Through Partnership

TikTok might relaunch in India as the parent company of the popular short video sharing platform, Bytedance is looking for a new partnership to mark its comeback to India. TikTok along with more than 250 apps was banned in India back in 2020, which includes some of the popular apps like PUBG Mobile, Alibaba, and more.

Krafton announced Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) in May 2021 as the replacement for the PUBG Mobile in India. Now, Bytedance is looking to bring back the popular TikTok app in India with a new partnership and the company is also looking to rehire its former employees and re-enter the market. Let’s take a look at more details.

TikTok May Re-enter India Soon With New Branding?

According to a report from Economic Times, Bytedance is in initial talks with Hiranandani Group for a partnership in India. Hiranandani Group is based out of Mumbai and it is one of the largest real estate developers in India with projects across Mumbai, Bangalore, and Chennai. The realty giant also runs data centre operations under the Yotta Infrastructure Solutions and has recently launched a consumer services arm 一 Tez Platforms and expects to invest up to Rs 3,500 crore over the next two-three years in the new business.

As per the report, the talks between Bytedance and Hiranandani Group are in an early stage, and union government officials have been informally sounded out on the plans, the report added. A senior government official confirmed to ET that “There have been no formal talks with us yet. But, we have been informed of the plans. As and when they come to us for approvals, we will examine their request.”

Further, if the talks between these two companies move ahead, the possible avenues for a partnership range from joining hands with Hiranandani’s consumer technology business Tez Platforms or storage of data at the group’s Yotta Infrastructure’s data centres. Bytedance is also actively hiring for new roles in India, the report added.

If at all the app makes its comeback to India, the app should follow the rule set by the Indian government. All the critical user data must be stored locally in India and not outside the country. If TikTok has to make its comeback, it will have to follow this. Like, PUBG Mobile, there is a chance that the app might be launched with a different name in India instead of TikTok. This also means, there might be a new branding to start off with.

Furthermore, as per the report, ByteDance’s legal head Gautam Vohra who left the company back in August 2021 has rejoined ByteDance earlier this year as Head of Legal, South Asia, and Regional counsel, Middle East.

Even if the app re-launches in India, it will face stiff competition from apps like Instagram (Reels), YouTube (Shorts), Snapchat, Chingari, ShareChat, MX Takatak, Moj, Josh, and more. But it is also worth mentioning that none of the clones or competitions has been able to match the popularity of TikTok in the span of two years.

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