ByteDance merged Musically and TikTok into a single global platform in August 2018. This move changed a popular lip-syncing app into one of the world’s leading entertainment platforms.
The sudden switch from Musically to TikTok caught many users off guard. ByteDance’s acquisition wasn’t a typical case of business failure. The company bought Musical.ly for $800 million to $1 billion in November 2017 and later combined it with TikTok’s existing platform. Musical.ly’s success showed in its numbers – 100 million monthly active users and over 200 million registered accounts. The merger supercharged TikTok’s growth, and the platform reached more than 500 million active users worldwide by 2018.
This piece looks at how and why Musical.ly became TikTok by understanding the business strategy that altered the map of social media.
The Day Musically Changed to TikTok
Musical.ly users got quite a surprise when they opened their phones on August 2, 2018. Their favorite app had completely changed overnight. The familiar Musical.ly logo disappeared and a new name took its place: TikTok.
ByteDance, the Chinese tech company, had bought Musical.ly for about $1 billion in November 2017. The company decided to merge it with their existing TikTok platform. Musical.ly announced these changes at a special event just as the app reached 100 million monthly active users.
Users experienced a smooth transition. Their Musical.ly accounts, content, followers, and personal settings moved automatically to the new TikTok platform after updating the app. ByteDance managed to keep user counts and past posts intact during this transformation.
“Musical.ly recently reached a new milestone of 100 million monthly active users and we are excited to enter into a new chapter,” said Alex Zhu, Musical.ly’s co-founder who became Senior Vice President of TikTok.
The upgraded platform kept the TikTok name and created a unified experience that blended popular features from both apps. Users got access to:
- A tailored video recommendation feed based on viewing priorities
- A “reaction” feature to respond to friends’ videos
- Improved creative tools with interactive gesture filters
- VR-type filters that activate by blinking
- Green-screen background effects
TikTok added a digital wellbeing feature that notified users after two hours of app usage. Many of Musical.ly’s distinctive elements stayed initially, like its unique “crown” verification system and duets feature. These gradually changed to checkmarks and other new capabilities.
The merger turned TikTok into a global powerhouse. The platform combined Musical.ly’s strong U.S. presence with TikTok’s existing 500 million active monthly users worldwide.
From Startup to Sensation: The Story of Musically
Musical.ly started in 2014 when entrepreneurs Alex Zhu and Luyu Yang created what would become a worldwide phenomenon. Musical.ly wasn’t their first project. The app emerged after their educational video platform Cicada failed. They raised $250,000 in seed funding, but their original educational concept didn’t catch on.
The founders had less than 10% of their funding left and faced possible failure. Zhu and Yang made a vital pivot. Zhu found inspiration on a train ride in Mountain View, California. He watched teenagers who either listened to music or created videos while playing music. This simple observation reshaped their business model completely.
They rebuilt their app into Musical.ly and launched it in July 2014 in just 30 days. The app saw about 500 daily downloads at first. A simple design change in April 2015 changed everything. They moved the Musical.ly logo and username position in shared videos. Users could now see the video’s source when shared on other platforms.
The results amazed everyone. Musical.ly reached the App Store’s #1 spot by July 6, 2015. The app stayed in the top 40 consistently after that. Musical.ly’s user base grew to over 40 million by late 2015. The numbers for 2016 were impressive:
- Over 10 million daily active users
- Users created about 10 million videos daily
- Total registered users hit 70 million
- The company raised $133.5 million with a $550 million valuation
Alex Zhu saw the bright side of their slow start: “We got lucky because we had time to build the product, to make it ready, to build every feature around community. If the growth came too early, it would probably just stay as a fad”.
Musical.ly expanded its features through 2016-2017. They added live streaming through their sister app Live.ly and formed strategic collaborations with major music labels like Warner Music Group. ByteDance bought the platform in November 2017, which led to its transformation into TikTok.
The Bigger Picture: Why the Merger Made Sense
ByteDance’s purchase of Musical.ly at roughly $1 billion in November 2017 meant much more than a basic corporate buyout. The company had bigger plans. ByteDance merged Musical.ly with TikTok in August 2018 to create a single platform that could stand up to social media giants worldwide.
This smart move solved geographic challenges that both apps faced. Musical.ly had won over the Western market, particularly American teens. TikTok (Douyin in China) ruled the Asian market with more than 300 million monthly active users. The unified platform became available throughout North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and beyond.
The numbers made perfect sense. ByteDance didn’t want to split its resources between two nearly identical apps targeting different regions. ByteDance’s founder, Zhang Yiming, put it simply: “China is home to only one-fifth of Internet users globally. If we don’t expand on a global scale, we are bound to lose to peers eyeing the four-fifths. Going global is a must”.
ByteDance’s sophisticated algorithm brought major tech improvements to the merged platform. The new app combined Musical.ly’s accessible interface with TikTok’s powerful recommendation system, which doubled the average time users spent on the app. Users got new features like reaction capabilities, better creative tools, and improved editing options.
This business decision led to remarkable growth. TikTok became the most downloaded iOS app worldwide in 2018’s first quarter. The platform reached 800 million monthly active users by July 2020 and crossed the 1 billion mark by September 2021.
The merger pushed TikTok way beyond Musical.ly’s lip-syncing roots. ByteDance’s vision turned TikTok into an entertainment platform that featured comedy, education, challenges, and countless other content types. This wider appeal caught the attention of users from all age groups, not just teenagers.
Musical.ly didn’t just shut down – it evolved. This strategic move turned a successful app into a global phenomenon that changed social media forever.
Conclusion
Musical.ly became TikTok on August 2, 2018 – a game-changing moment in social media history. This wasn’t just another rebrand. ByteDance had bought Musical.ly for about $1 billion in November 2017, and now their master plan was coming together.
The business logic was crystal clear. ByteDance combined two powerhouses: Musical.ly’s teenage fanbase in the West and TikTok’s huge Asian following. This created a global platform ready to challenge social media giants.
Users found their Musical.ly app completely different that morning. The change caught many by surprise, but everything worked smoothly. Their accounts, videos, followers, and settings moved seamlessly to TikTok. The platform kept its best features and added better creative tools with a smarter recommendation algorithm.
TikTok grew beyond Musical.ly’s simple lip-syncing roots. The app turned into an entertainment hub with comedy, education, challenges, and endless content types. People of all ages started using the app, not just teens.
Numbers tell the story best. Musical.ly had reached 100 million monthly active users – impressive at the time. But TikTok’s growth exploded after the merger, reaching 1 billion users by September 2021.
Musical.ly’s story isn’t about failure. It’s about smart business moves that turned a successful app into a worldwide sensation. While the Musical.ly name faded away, its DNA lives on in one of today’s most powerful social platforms.
FAQs
Q1. When exactly did Musical.ly transform into TikTok? Musical.ly officially became TikTok on August 2, 2018, following ByteDance’s acquisition of Musical.ly in November 2017.
Q2. How was the transition from Musical.ly to TikTok handled for existing users? The transition was designed to be seamless. Users’ accounts, content, followers, and settings were automatically migrated to the new TikTok platform when they updated their app.
Q3. Why did ByteDance decide to merge Musical.ly with TikTok? The merger was a strategic move to create a unified global platform. It combined Musical.ly’s strong presence in Western markets with TikTok’s popularity in Asia, allowing ByteDance to compete more effectively with other social media giants.
Q4. What major changes occurred when Musical.ly became TikTok? While retaining popular features, TikTok introduced enhanced creative tools, a more sophisticated recommendation algorithm, and expanded content categories beyond lip-syncing to include comedy, education, and challenges.
Q5. How did the merger affect user growth? The merger significantly accelerated growth. Before the change, Musical.ly had about 100 million monthly active users. After becoming TikTok, the platform’s user base expanded rapidly, surpassing 1 billion users by September 2021.
