TikTok is one of the most popular social media platforms in the world, with over 1 billion monthly active users. Originally launched in September 2016, TikTok quickly became a global phenomenon, particularly among Gen Z users. The app allows users to create and share short videos set to music, often incorporating lipsyncing, dancing, comedy and talent. In just a few years, it has revolutionized entertainment and launched the careers of many creators and influencers.
TikTok was created by the Chinese tech company ByteDance. The original version of the app was called Douyin and was released in China in September 2016. The following year in 2017, ByteDance developed the international version called TikTok for markets outside of China. TikTok then started to gain major traction globally, becoming the most downloaded app in 2018. Its growth further exploded in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, as people turned to TikTok for entertainment during lockdowns.
Original Name
TikTok was originally launched in September 2016 under the name A.me by ByteDance, a Beijing-based internet technology company founded in 2012 by Zhang Yiming. A.me was a short video app for the Chinese market. In November 2017, ByteDance acquired the social video app Musical.ly and merged it with its similar app Douyin to target international markets.
Douyin (抖音) was the original name for the Chinese version of the app. After acquiring and merging with Musical.ly, Douyin was introduced to the international market under the new name TikTok in August 2018. While Douyin remains the name used in China, TikTok became the single brand name internationally.
TikTok’s original name before rebranding was Douyin, and it was created and launched by ByteDance in China in September 2016. After acquiring Musical.ly in November 2017, ByteDance merged it with Douyin and then launched the merged app internationally as TikTok in August 2018.
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TikTok
Reason for Rebranding
TikTok originally launched in September 2016 under the name Douyin in China. At the time, Douyin focused on enabling users to create and share short lip-sync, dance, comedy, and talent videos. By 2018, Douyin’s parent company ByteDance decided to expand the app internationally under a new name. This rebranding to TikTok allowed the company to develop a fresh brand image for global markets outside of China.
According to The Verge, the main motivation for rebranding Douyin as TikTok was to distance the app from its musical.ly origins, as musical.ly had developed a reputation for lipsyncing videos. ByteDance wanted the new TikTok brand to have a fresh start and draw people in with its broader range of video content and features beyond lipsyncing.
As explained on Quora, the TikTok name was chosen because “it’s catchy and easy to remember.” The rebranding also marked TikTok’s expansion beyond lipsyncing and musical performances to include other categories like comedy, talent, education, and more. Overall, the renaming to TikTok in 2018 signified the app’s global growth ambitions and its evolution into a short form video platform with diverse content.
New Branding
TikTok underwent a major rebranding in August 2018. The popular lip-syncing app Musical.ly, which launched in 2014, was rebranded as TikTok. As reported by The Verge, “Musical.ly users opened their phones to a surprise today as they found the app replaced with a new logo and name: TikTok.” (https://www.theverge.com/2018/8/2/17644260/musically-rebrand-tiktok-bytedance-douyin)
Parent Company
TikTok’s parent company is ByteDance Ltd., founded in 2012 by Chinese entrepreneur Zhang Yiming. ByteDance is a global company headquartered in Beijing, China.
According to The Truth About TikTok, ByteDance Ltd. was founded by Chinese entrepreneur Zhang Yiming in 2012. While founded in China, ByteDance has grown into a global company with employees all over the world. The company’s headquarters are located in Beijing, China.
Global Expansion
After rebranding to TikTok in 2017, the app began expanding globally at a rapid pace. TikTok tailored its strategy to each new market, localizing the app experience and pursuing growth through culturally relevant content. According to a 2019 Harvard Business Review article, TikTok categorized countries into tiers based on market potential and allocated growth resources accordingly.
Key launches included TikTok’s September 2017 release in Thailand, its launch in Japan in 2018, and its August 2018 release in the United States, United Kingdom, and other English-speaking markets. Within a year of entering the US, TikTok hit over 26.5 million monthly active users. Other major international growth milestones were passing 1 billion downloads globally by February 2019 and hitting 2 billion downloads by August 2020.
TikTok attributed its rapid international expansion to strong viral growth, responding quickly to new trends and optimizing for differentiated localized content. Features like reacting to videos with Duets supported this viral, localized content. According to a 2021 article, TikTok continues to evaluate and adjust its market tiering every two months to direct resources to high-potential areas.
New Features
After rebranding to TikTok, the app began rolling out new features to set itself apart from competitors. Some key features added include:
In 2018, TikTok introduced the react feature, allowing users to respond to videos with emojis, as a way to interact and engage with content. This was similar to reactions and commenting found on platforms like Instagram and Facebook. However, TikTok’s large emoji reactions aimed to amplify engagement.
TikTok also launched its duet feature in 2018, which lets users create a split-screen video beside another user’s clip. This built off the reaction feature by allowing for more interactive, creative content. The duet feature helped TikTok stand out from competitors by enabling new forms of collaborative videos.
According to the CNN article, in 2022 TikTok introduced a real-time video sharing feature called “Now” that cloned the core functionality of the rival app BeReal. Adding new real-time sharing capabilities helped TikTok compete with emerging rivals.
By regularly adding new interactive features like reactions, duets, and real-time sharing, TikTok continued to differentiate itself after rebranding and create engaging experiences beyond what competitors offered.
Increased Popularity
After rebranding from Musical.ly to TikTok in August 2018, the app saw a rapid increase in popularity around the world. According to The Incredible Rise of TikTok, since the rebranding, TikTok’s monthly active users jumped from 100 million to 689 million in the three years between January 2018 to December 2020. Engagement also rose steeply, with the total time spent in the TikTok app increasing 210% year-over-year in 2019.
As of December 2022, TikTok has around 1 billion monthly active users worldwide, according to TikTok User Statistics. The rebranding and subsequent viral growth has made TikTok one of the most popular social apps, especially among Gen Z users. The addictive short-form videos, fun features like duets and stitches, and sophisticated recommendation algorithm are key factors attributed to TikTok’s popularity after its rebranding and global expansion.
Cultural Impact
TikTok has had a massive impact on internet culture and trends since its launch. Its short-form video format has shaped the way that content is created and consumed online. TikTok is known for quickly launching viral meme formats like dance challenges, comedic skits, reaction videos and more. These viral formats often spread beyond TikTok to other social platforms.
TikTok has created a new generation of internet celebrities and influencers. Its algorithm is very effective at picking up on rising talent and promoting new creators to large audiences quickly. This has allowed people to rapidly gain millions of followers from posting fun, creative short videos. Well-known TikTok stars like Charli D’Amelio, Addison Rae and Khaby Lame skyrocketed to fame through sharing engaging content on the app.
Many popular dance trends and music hits can trace their rise directly to TikTok. Songs gain huge popularity through dances, memes and challenges created using the music. TikTok has become a hub for music discovery among younger generations. Artists even cater songs and marketing towards going viral on the platform. TikTok has had a major hand in shaping youth culture and spreading new music, fashion and slang.
Conclusion
In summary, TikTok was originally launched in 2016 under the name Douyin in China. The app was then rebranded to TikTok for its global launch in 2017 outside of China. This rebranding was strategic as it allowed the company to differentiate the app for an international market.
The new branding and sleek user interface helped fuel TikTok’s rapid growth and expansion worldwide. With innovative features like reacting to videos and stitching multiple clips together, TikTok has become a cultural phenomenon. Its popularity continues to skyrocket, now with over 1 billion monthly active users.
TikTok’s rebranding and launch strategy played an important role in propelling it to global success. By repositioning the app for international audiences, TikTok was able to capture a massive new user base. This demonstrates the power of rebranding, especially when expanding to new markets. Overall, TikTok’s rebranding was pivotal in transforming it from a Chinese app to a global sensation.
