TikTok owner ByteDance accuses Facebook of ‘plagiarism and smears’

TikTok owner ByteDance has accused Facebook of plagiarism and smears although it did not elaborate on the accusation. The Chinese firm also said it faced “complex and unimaginable difficulties” as it worked to grow into global company. The Beijing-based company made the comments in a statement late on Sunday posted on its official account on Jinri Toutiao, a news aggregator app it owns.

“ByteDance has always been committed to becoming a global company. During this process, we have faced all kinds of complex and unimaginable difficulties, including the tense international political environment, collision and conflict of different cultures and plagiarism and smears from competitor Facebook,” it said.