TikTok Might Soon Relaunch in India
TikTok was initially banned by the Indian government back in 2020 as part of the country’s fight against Chinese entities. Although there were reports, hinting at the possible return of the platform in India, it never happened.
However, according to a recent report by The Economic Times, ByteDance could partner with a Mumbai-based company named Hiranandani Group to bring TikTok back to India. Hiranandani Group, for those unaware, is a big name in the real-estate sector in India. It was established back in 1978 by Surendra and Niranjan Hiranandani and currently has multiple projects in metro cities like Mumbai, Bangalore, and Chennai.
The company also has many operational data centers under Yotta Infrastructure Solutions and also launched a consumer services platform named Tez Platforms. It expects to invest up to Rs 3,500 crores in new businesses in the next 2-3 years.
As per sources familiar with the matter, ByteDance and Hiranandani Group are in early talks with each other for a possible partnership to bring back TikTok. The former has also reportedly started hiring new and existing employees in India to prepare for the return. ByteDance has reportedly re-hired Gautam Vohra as the Head of Legal, South Asia, Regional Counsel, the Middle East after the executive left the company back in August 2021.
However, much like what Krafton faced with BGMI, ByteDance will need to follow certain authoritative rules set by the government to operate in India. They will need to store user data locally in India and might also have to rename its brand. ByteDance could use Hiranandani’s reach and resources such as the Tez platforms and the data centers to support its technical infrastructure for this.
Economic Times reached out to a senior government official regarding the situation, and he said 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.“
Now, it is worth mentioning that if and when TikTok makes its return to India, it would have to face heavy competition from some major players like Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, and more such platforms that have gained popularity in India while TikTok was legally banned in the country. Nonetheless, none of the above platforms have been able to gain the amount of popularity as TikTok in the recent past. So it will be interesting to see how ByteDance manages to deal with the government to bring back TikTok. Stay tuned for further updates, and let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
