FRANCISCO: TikTok on Thursday licensed a catalogue of independent music asit worked to build on the momentum of the social networking appspecializing in video snippets.
The deal between TikTok and Merlin, a digital rights agency for independentmusic labels, is designed to help facilitate the use of the short-formvideo service for promotions.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Merlin chief executive Jeremy Sirota said: “Merlin members are increasinglyusing TikTok for their marketing campaigns, and today´s partnership ensuresthat they and their artists can also build new and incremental revenuestreams.”
London-based Merlin said its roster of members spans more than 60 countriesand includes tens of thousands of independent record labels, distributorsand artist management companies.
The news came as TikTok opened an office in Los Angeles to advance itsambitions in the US.
“Located between the innovative tech companies in Silicon Beach and thestreaming content companies at Hayden tract (in Los Angeles), TikTok trulysits at the intersection of technology and entertainment, physically andfiguratively,” TikTok US general manager Vanessa Pappas said.
“While we are a global company, having a permanent office in LA speaks toour commitment to the US market and deepens our bonds with the city, andthe talent and companies, that call it home.”
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TikTok, launched by Chinese company ByteDance in September 2017, hasquickly become one of the most popular social networks in the world, withyoung people its main market.
In November, the app hit 1.5 billion downloads worldwide, outperformingInstagram.
Users typically post short clips of themselves performing skits,lip-syncing and dancing.
But TikTok has come under scrutiny recently over whether it censors contentdeemed sensitive by China.
TikTok said in a statement in October its operations were not influenced bythe Chinese government. -APP/AFP
