TikTok to Launch Live Shopping Service in US, Report Says
Buy some jean shorts in between videos of TikTok dances.
TikTok is reportedly launching a live shopping service in North America, partnering with Los Angeles-based TalkShopLive, a livestreaming buying and selling platform. The companies are finalizing the deal and nothing has yet been signed, The Financial Times reported Saturday, citing two unnamed sources.
TikTok didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. TalkShopLive declined to comment.
At the moment, people can buy items off of TikTok, but that's through sponsored posts made by companies. TikTok recently partnered with Penguin Random House so when users mention one of the publisher's books in a post, they can add a link that points to a dedicated page with information about the publication.
E-commerce on social media has attracted other companies. Meta, parent company to Facebook and Instagram, launched Facebook Marketplace in 2016, and several years later the feature has 1.1 billion users, Meta has said. The company didn't publish Marketplace revenues for 2021. In August, Meta said it was shutting down Facebook Live Shopping, a feature similar to a television shopping channel.
TikTok experimented with shopping features in Europe but ended that project when it failed to hit sales targets. Live shopping on Douyin, TikTok's sister site in China, has seen more than 10 billion products sold between April 2020 and 2021, according to SEO Agency China, a Chinese digital marketing firm.