ByteDance acquires Moonton for approximately $4bn

ByteDance announced on Monday its video games unit Nuverse agreed to acquire gaming studio Moonton Technology for around $4bn.

The acquisition comes as part of TikTok's owner's plan to further expand into the video games business and puts it in direct competition with Chinese company Tencent, who had also tabled a bid for the games unit.

“Through cross-team collaboration and drawing on lessons and insights from its own rapid growth, Moonton provides the strategic support needed to accelerate Nuverse’s global gaming offerings,” ByteDance said in a statement according to Reuters.

In an internal memo, Yuan Jing, CEO of Moonton, said the company would operate independently from ByteDance after the acquisition, sources told the media outlet.

Moonton Technology is most famous for its multiplayer online battle arena game Mobile Legends.