TOKYO (JAPAN) – Chinese firm ByteDance is reportedly exploring the sale of the Indian operations of TikTok to rival company Glance, Bloomberg News reported on Saturday.
The discussions, initiated by Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp, are private, early and complex, the report said.
Glance’s parent, mobile advertising technology firm InMobi, also owns short-video app Roposo that has gained in popularity after TikTok was banned by the Indian government in July last year.
SoftBank is a backer of InMobi Pte as well as TikTok’s Chinese parent, ByteDance, the report added.
Last month, ByteDance reduced its 2,000-plus India team and said in a company memo that it’s unsure of resuming operations in India.
The move came after India decided to retain its ban on TikTok and 58 other Chinese apps following responses from the companies on issues such as compliance and privacy.