Video Game Market Sees Another Unexpected Entry As TikTok Follows Netflix's Steps: What Are The Chinese Giant's First Moves?

By Enrique D. Fernandez

TikTok recently announced the expansion of its universe with the inclusion of an exclusive section for video games.

The app that revolutionized the mobile video market now aims to repeat its success in the field of mobile games, albeit without neglecting its main offering.

ByteDance, the company that owns the platform, has not yet confirmed when the video game catalog will be available on the social network. As reported by the Financial Times, the official announcement should arrive in the next week.

According to the British media outlet, these games would be integrated into the existing TikTok app, so users would not have to download an additional component to access this functionality. Instead, a new exclusive tab would be added to the app.

TikTok follows the steps of Netflix Inc NFLX, which launched its mobile games feature in 2021. This filled a void left by Snap Inc SNAP Snapchat and Meta Platforms Inc META’s Facebook, both of which scrapped their gaming platforms in recent months.

What Will TikTok Gaming Look Like?

Although the video game catalog is expected to be quite extensive, it seems that the new TikTok gaming section could also include all kinds of ads, a potentially negative feature for those users eager to play without pauses.

“TikTok and Gaming were made for each other. For more than a decade, the Gaming industry has been growing faster than any other to become one of the world's most common forms of entertainment. With three billion active players, publishers are now launching games with the intention of creating mega brands and appealing to the masses,” said Assaf Sagy, head of global games for the platform in a recent LinkedIn post.

“TikTok has far shown its value in helping consumers discover what's fun, valuable, and popular,” the executive added.

The Video Game Business

By mid-2022, TikTok had achieved a potential reach of one billion users. If this success were to be replicated in the new section, it would take the mobile video game industry to a new level of profitability.

In fact, TikTok hails from China, the country that leads the video game market with yearly revenues of more than $46 billion. Japan and South Korea, where TikTok has also been going strong for a while, are following closely.

The games are expected to be accompanied by diverse upgrades, accessible through different payment methods, as long as they are compatible with the Apple store purchase system.

Which Video Games Will Be Available On TikTok?

Regarding the content, it was confirmed that various TikTok moderators in Europe tested the titles to detect any unwanted content. For the time being, everything seems to be on track for a possible debut this week.

According to sources, this step would only be the beginning of a new era for TikTok. Reports have also indicated that the Chinese company could be in negotiations with Netflix, which is interested in continuing to weave ties with the video game world as well, cementing an initiative that hasn’t been fully successful just yet.

Related: Netflix Snaps Its Sixth Gaming Studio

Along these lines, Mike Verdu, vice president of Netflix Games, told TechCrunch that the platform is seriously exploring a cloud gaming offer.

The manager defined it as an added value within the streaming platform and announced that the company is already working on the development of 55 exclusive video games for its clients — although he did not share details about a potential alliance with TikTok within the gaming category.

The Future Is Mobile

The arrival in the gaming world of the leading social video platform right now reaffirmed the success that mobile games are currently experiencing. According to official numbers, the mobile gaming industry will end 2022 with revenues of $136 billion. This compared to $86 billion generated by games released only for the PC and home consoles markets.

Only time will tell which video game development companies decide to join the mobile universe, thus expanding the offer of titles that can be enjoyed through these devices, and which ones won’t. Ultimately, those betting on mobile will likely continue to take market share from physical formats and established gaming consoles such as Sony Group Corp SONY’s PlayStation and Nintendo ADR NTDOY.

Meanwhile, keep an eye out for the “TikTok Made Me Play It” event on Nov. 2, which is when the new gaming channel could be officially announced. 

In fact, TikTok’s first gamer-focused event will feature several other heavyweights in the industry including Electronic Arts inc EA, NetEase Inc NTES, VNG Corporation, Ubisoft Entertainment SA UBSFF and Take-Two Interactive Software Inc TTWO, among others.

See Also: Elon Musk Hints Twitter Could Aim At TikTok's Social Media Dominance Under His Leadership