TikTok eyes scale by launching SDK tools for third-party developers

TikTok has announced new tools for third-party apps and developers to create and share videos on the short video application seamlessly. It introduced the feature Share to TikTok SDK for its developers' program.

This will let users edit videos in other apps and then publish them from that app to TikTok.

"The new TikTok SDK allows third-party apps an opportunity to extend their reach while giving users a wider selection of creative tools to help their videos match their vision. We're excited to extend our creative offerings with our new developer program," the company said in its blog.

The Bytedance-owned app's new SDK has seven content creation partners, including Adobe. With the latest integration, Premiere Rush users will have the flexibility to edit using its range of features and share instantly on TikTok.

Plotaverse, AR app Fuse.it, gaming highlights recorder Medal, Momento GIF Maker, PicsArt, and Enlight Videoleop are the other supporting partners for this SDK.

The move is primarily meant to bring more videos into Bytedance's ecosystem. Since Bytedance started adding more tools to make its content shareable seamlessly, the company is looking for organic ways to scale videos.

With an exponential rise in its user-base, TikTok has emerged as one of the world's most popular apps with over 1 billion downloads. It emerged as a major challenger to social networking sites such as Facebook, Instagram and Periscope soon after its launch in 2016.

But the app has also been in controversy over its censorship of content.

The US government is reviewing how Bytedance facilitated the consolidation of Musical.ly with TikTok, arguing that TikTok was being used by the Chinese government to censor politically sensitive content.

With plays in the operating system and smartphone, TikTok's parent Bytedance is gradually posing a threat to Facebook and Google.

As far as local operations are concerned, Bytedance had posted a profit of Rs 3.38 crore in FY19. However, Bytedance owns and operates three products - TikTok, Vigo and Helo - in India, and they were collectively losing hundreds of crore of rupees, at least, in the last fiscal.

Recommended read: Bytedance in India is profitable, but how?

For background, Helo's nemesis ShareChat had posted a loss of Rs 440 crore with a zero operational revenue in FY19. Hence, it's highly unlikely that Bytedance generated more cash than its expenses in FY19 from its Indian operations.