TikTok maker ByteDance takes aim at lifestyle leader Xiaohongshu with new app

The brand of TikTok’s dad or mum corporation ByteDance is viewed at its booth during an organised media tour to the Zhongguancun Countrywide Innovation Demonstration Zone Exhibition Center in Beijing, China, Feb. 10, 2022. REUTERS/Florence Lo

BEIJING, July 14 (Reuters) – TikTok’s Chinese proprietor ByteDance is wanting for its up coming massive hit by wading deeper into the life-style sector of social media with Kesong, a procuring and life-style suggestions application comparable to market leader Xiaohongshu.

Kesong, introduced last week, will allow users to share shots, videos and generate-ups of trend strategies and buying activities.

It emulates Xiaohongshu, usually likened to Meta Platforms Inc’s (META.O) Instagram and which is greatly considered the embodiment of “planting grass” – the notion that assessments can entice readers or followers to purchase a merchandise or service.

Vogue and luxury brands usually switch to Xiaohongshu’s influencers who can attain tens of millions of affluent end users in China. Overseas, Xiaohongshu is identified as Pink in nations around the world including Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, Canada and the United States.

Hardware and computer software maker ByteDance was valued at close to $300 billion in modern trades and has come to be regarded as one thing of an application manufacturing facility. It has produced a string of hits from news aggregator Toutiao to limited video clip application Douyin and its abroad equivalent TikTok, China’s most effective application overseas.

It attempted its hand at a “planting grass” app in 2018 with the limited-lived Xincao. It tried again in 2020 with Sharee, aimed at overseas markets. Later on renamed Lemon8, the app has over a million downloads in Japan and has expanded into Thailand.

Lemon8 is checking out the risk of increasing into Australia, two men and women at the corporation told Reuters.

The app is overseen by Alex Zhu, senior vice president of product and approach at ByteDance and formerly TikTok head, the two folks claimed, declining to be recognized as they had been not authorised to speak with media.

“ByteDance is pretty determined to crack the ‘high-brow’ sector (with Kesong and Lemon8) to obtain a increased ARPU,” just one of the people explained, referring to regular revenue for each consumer.

ByteDance did not answer to a request for remark.

Reporting by Yingzhi Yang and Brenda Goh Enhancing by Christopher Cushing

Our Criteria: The Thomson Reuters Belief Ideas.