Tiktok parent company likely to launch smartphone

Chinese video app Tiktok’s parent company Bytedance is reportedly working on its own smartphone which will come with the company’s pre-loaded apps, including news aggregator Jinri Toutiao, for the global market. According to a report published in the Financial Times, Bytedance plans to launch a phone preloaded with its own apps — which include newsfeeds, short video platforms and games — in a bid to further spread its reach. The Beijing-based company confirmed a deal with phone maker Smartisan early this year, saying it had acquired a patent portfolio and hired some Smartisan employees, The Verge reported. The report doesn’t offer details about the phone’s design or intended market, although it suggests that Bytedance could be hampered by the US government’s hostilitytowardchinesetelecommunication companies. Bytedance is one of the few tech companies from China to boast a large user base outside its home market, including India and the US.