TikTok parent company Bytedance confirms that it is developing its own smartphone

Chinese social media firm **ByteDance Ltd** said on Monday it is developing a smartphone, following a deal it made with device maker Smartisan Technology. The plans come as the tech firm expands into new sectors beyond video and news apps. In a statement, a ByteDance spokeswoman said a smartphone had been part of Smartisan’s development plans before the deal it made with ByteDance. “The product was a continuation of earlier Smartisan plans, aiming to satisfy the needs of the old Smartisan user base,” the spokeswoman added. [caption id=“attachment_7078081” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”]  eople are seen at the Bytedance Technology booth at the Digital China exhibition in Fuzhou, Fujian province, China 5 May, 2019. Image: Reuters[/caption] On Monday a sub-division of Chinese financial news outlet Caijing reported that the phone had been in development for seven months. The effort is being led by Wu Dezhou, a former executive at Smartisan, the outlet added. Earlier this year **ByteDance acquired a set of patents from Smartisan** . Some Smartisan employees also transferred to ByteDance, as part of what the latter company called a “normal flow of talent.” Smartisan is a niche player in China’s smartphone sector and is best known for its flamboyant founder Luo Yonghao. ByteDance has risen to become a leading player in tech, rivaling the likes of Baidu Inc and Tencent Holdings Ltd in influence. Douyin, the company’s **app for streaming short videos** , has more than 300 million monthly users in China, ByteDance marketing manager Zhi Ying said in June. TikTok, Douyin’s global-facing counterpart, has also grown popular in North America. ByteDance has recently begun investing in sectors not directly related to social media. The company has hired staff from London-based startup JukeDeck, which specializes in AI-generated music, Reuters reported in July.