ByteDance terminates Resso music app in India over data handling
ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, has announced that it will close its music-streaming app Resso in India by January end. This decision follows the Indian government's directive to Apple and Google to remove Resso from their app stores last December. A ByteDance representative said, "Unfortunately, owing to local market conditions, we can no longer continue to serve users of Resso in India."
Indian government questioned Resso's improper data handling
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) sought information from ByteDance on the improper use of proprietary algorithms for processing data of Indians on the Resso app. However, instead of answering the queries posed by the government, Resso opted to shut its business in India. "The app had not provided any response to the queries in the the notices that were sent to them and has instead chosen to exit the market," a government official told Economic Times.
Resso will refund remaining subscription fees to users
Resso will stop operations on January 31, and its users will receive refunds for any remaining subscription fees. India was the final market for Resso after the company ended the music subscription service in Brazil and Indonesia to concentrate on TikTok Music. This streaming service is presently available in Australia, Mexico, and Singapore, but there are no plans for an Indian launch.
Bytedance is now focusing on TikTok Music
Bytedance is now focusing on growing its TikTok Music subscription service to compete with rivals like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music. Although there are no plans to introduce TikTok Music in the US yet, ByteDance filed a trademark application with the US Patent and Trademark Office for the service in May 2022. TikTok, the video streaming platform remains banned in India since 2020. However, it has expanded worldwide with over 1.7 billion users as of 2023.
