TikTok owner ByteDance retreats from video gaming with cuts at main studio amid a stagnating market dominated by Tencent

The pullback by China’s most valuable start-up comes as the domestic video gaming market – once regarded as a lucrative area that could be a growth engine for Big Tech firms – has stagnated.

In 2021, Beijing limited people under the age of 18 to playing just one hour a day on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and statutory holidays. All new games also have to go through a rigorous review before being put online and monetised in the country. Since the end of an eight-month freeze on game licences, the number of newly approved titles each month has remained lower than previous levels.

After last year’s lay-offs, one person at the company told the Post that ByteDance had three major gaming studios left. The company had scaled up in the market by offering higher salaries than at Tencent and NetEase, so the lay-offs could impact overall pay in the industry and the flow of personnel, the source said.