TikTok Company ByteDance Shifts Away from Gaming, Cuts Hundreds of Jobs in the Process

TikTok company ByteDance seems to have changed its mind about pursuing gaming on its flagship platform. According to a report from IGN, the Beijing-based tech company cut more than a hundred jobs in the process of "aggressively downsizing" its video game business component.

According to a report from the South China Morning Post, the Chinese Internet company was still spending millions in funds for its gaming operations just a year ago. This sudden shift from gaming leaves hundreds of workers in Shanghai's Wushuang Studio jobless, and some relocated to other studios. These events follow the shutdown of its other studio 101 Studio, back in June.

According to a report by Gamesindustry, ByteDance's mid-core and hardcore publishing arm Nuverse, as well as newly acquired companies like Moonton Technology and C4games, make up the majority of the company's games business. Could this imply that games like "Mobile Legends: Bang Bang" by Moonton, one of the most popular mobile games in Southeast Asia right now, could experience the same shake-up?

Tiktok Parent Company Shifts Away From Gaming

This sudden pivot by ByteDance hints that the company might have its eyes fixed on new ventures. A Tech Times report from July noticed that the company secured a trademark mentioning Tiktok and what seemingly looks like a budding music streaming platform. According to the report, a new trademark application by TikTok Music's parent company, ByteDance, refers to what might be the next-largest competitor to major streaming services, Spotify and Apple Music.

Meanwhile, another Tech Times report covering ByteDance reveals that the Beijing-based company was involved in an AI project with Microsoft. This Microsoft-ByteDance AI project collaboration was confirmed during the Ray Summit conference, which happened on Aug. 23 to Aug. 24. The report also confirms that the Ray Summit Conference is an annual conference that focuses on the so-called Ray, the open-source Python framework for building distributed applications.

Given the major programs that ByteDance is currently taking part in, it comes as no surprise that the pressure from these projects affects its current operations.

China's gaming industry shift

Despite recent regulatory backtracking in China, analysts believe the Chinese gaming industry has peaked. Gaming companies in China have already begun to grow their businesses abroad by opening offices in North America and Europe and purchasing game studios. Chinese regulators may have prompted these companies to relocate their operations outside of the country, fearing stricter laws and heightened censorship.

More about ByteDance

Back in May, ByteDance tried adding video games to TikTok in an attempt to expand its gaming portfolio. This move follows streaming site Netflix's decision to incorporate cloud-based games into its ma in services. Clearly, like Netflix, ByteDance's plan of fusing TikTok and gaming did not turn into a complete success.

Nevertheless, TikTok alone continues to be one of the most used apps in present times. A report from InsiderIntelligence tells us that the multimedia app will have 750 million users worldwide before 2022 ends.