Internet technology company ByteDance Ltd. is believed to be considering a sale of the India operations of TikTok to its rival firm, Glance, in a bid to revive the popular video-sharing app that has been banned in the country.

According to a Bloomberg report, talks in this regard have been initiated by Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp. conglomerate, but details are yet to come out since the discussion is at an early and complex stage.

SoftBank backs both Glance’s parent, InMobi Pte, and TikTok’s parent, ByteDance. Any agreement on the sale will require a final seal of approval from Indian authorities, the report added. Contacted by Bloomberg, a Glance spokesperson refused to comment on the alleged development.

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Following increased border hostility between India and China last year, the former had banned thousands of Chinese apps and TikTok was one of the casualties.

SoftBank is said to be on a mission to salvage TikTok’s India assets and scouting for local partners even as the new U S administration led by President Joe Biden has put on hold the unwinding of the video platform’s American operations. It has asked a federal judge to pause a lawsuit after former President Donald Trump banned the app from the US markets over “national security concerns”.

If things go to plan, the report stated that the Indian government will insist that user data and technology of TikTok stay within its borders since its relations with China continue to remain strained and India will make no allowances for China-based technology companies.

China’s new rules concerning technology export are expected to make the negotiations more complex and any sale of TikTok could also require a go-ahead from Chinese authorities.

Also read: TikTok scales down India operations; read full text of mail to staff

TikTok had its biggest market in India, with over 200 million people using the app. However, the fortunes turned as the Indian, citing threats to its sovereignty and security, decided to ban a host of Chinese apps including TikTok. Last month, the government indicated that the ban won’t be lifted.

ByteDance has started winding up its local operations and went on a firing spree that threw many of its Indian employees out of job.

Bangalore-headquartered Glance Digital Experience, which is a potential partner of TikTok, is a mobile content platform launched by Harvard Business School alumni Naveen Tewari, who also founded InMobi, India’s first unicorn. Glance’s short video sharing platform, Roposo, soared in popularity after the TikTok ban, and it became a unicorn in December after funding by Google Inc. and billionaire Peter Thiel’s Mithril Capital.

(Edited by : Jomy)

First Published:Feb 13, 2021 8:32 PM IST