ByteDance is currently testing its food delivery service for the Douyin app soon. The company behind TikTok says that it will be launching in select major cities in China.
Douyin is Entering the Food Delivery Venture
A woman walks past the headquarters of ByteDance, the parent company of video sharing app TikTok, in Beijing on September 16, 2020. - Silicon Valley tech giant Oracle is "very close" to sealing a deal to become the US partner to Chinese-owned video app TikTok to avert a ban in the United States, President Donald Trump said on September 15.
According to a report by Pandaily, Douyin will conduct internal testing in three big Chinese cities such as Beijing, Guangzhou, and Beijing.
As per ByteDance's spokesperson, Douyin will pilot the early trials which will involve merchants in the said cities. They will be the first to try "food delivery services for group purchasing."
It's expected that Douyin will roll out several trials in other pilot cities in the future. ByteDance remains tight-lipped about the particular schedule of the test at the moment.
"We would consider expanding the feature to more cities in the future depending on the testing results. There is no detailed timeline yet," the company's representative said.
Douyin Aims to Compete With Alibaba and Meituan
This is not the first time that we heard of ByteDance's attempt to enter the food delivery sector in China. Back in July 2022, the tech giant announced that it wanted to penetrate the market to compete with Meituan and Alibaba.
At that time, Douyin considered introducing the feature for businesses that wanted to receive "group-purchased" goods during emergencies.
With COVID-19 cases still hitting the region, Chinese authorities have to remain strict in implementing the health protocols and policies in the country.
As such, users should ditch going to restaurants in some cities to avoid the spread of the virus. With the inclusion of Douyin's food delivery service, they could now order food without sacrificing their health and safety outside.
Related Article: ByteDance's Douyin Launches Ride-Hailing Services to Earn Profit in Local Sector
New Food Delivery Business Model
In another report by CNBC, ByteDance will be using a different business model for its food delivery venture. It will be different from Alibaba and Meituan's food delivery services.
According to a research firm IMARC Group, ByteDance wants to dip its toes in the market to potentially snag the limelight from the existing food delivery giants.
In 2022, the market sits at $66.4 billion. This alone is enough for other companies to invest in this food delivery business.
Earlier in January 2023, ByteDance reportedly axed hundreds of workers in China. As part of the company's plans to cut operating and labor costs, it decided to streamline its operations via a quick layoff.
The termination of the staff affected nearly 10% of the workforce inside ByteDance. This decision is also said to be connected to the discontinued support for Feishu, a popular communication tool that was formerly dubbed "Lark."
According to an anonymous source, those laid-off employees will receive compensation that is equivalent to their yearly wage (with an extra one-month salary).
