The Chinese company behind the popular video app TikTok is set to go head-to-head with the likes of Spotify and Apple in the music streaming market with the launch of its own rival service, reported the Financial Times.
ByteDance is in talks with the world’s largest record companies — Universal Music, Sony Music and Warner Music — for global licensing deals to include their songs on its new music subscription service, according to FT sources.
The Beijing-based technology company aims to launch as soon as next month, initially in emerging markets such as India, Indonesia and Brazil, before a future opening in the US.
The move would see ByteDance, valued by Japanese investment group SoftBank at $75 billion last year, battle directly with industry leaders Spotify, Tencent and Apple in the market for paid music.