• by Laurie Sullivan  @lauriesullivan, February 1, 2021

Despite countries including India and the United States banning the app, TikTok has inked a partnership with media holding company WPP that will give its media clients early access to emerging services built by the social platform.

There is no word on how the partnership will affect or influence the pending deal between Oracle and TikTok.

The partnership with TikTok gives WPP's advertisers early access to the social media's advertising products in development, and includes a partnership on marketing API integrations and formats such as augmented reality. Subvrsive, a WPP company, was one of the first TikTok Effects Partners.

“Our clients want new and innovative ways to reach consumers,” stated Mark Read, CEO of WPP. “TikTok has quickly demonstrated the power of mobile video and the many opportunities that exist for brands to engage in meaningful and creative ways on its platform.”

Brands that have used TikTok include Chobani, Chipotle, Elf Cosmetics, Guess, National Basketball Association, National Football League, The Washington Post, Hewlett Packard.

As of January 2021, the company touts about 1 billion monthly active users, up from 680 million in November 2018. Sensor Tower reported the app has been downloaded more than 2.6 billion times worldwide as of December 2020.

TikTok also plans to build a diverse creative community to partner with WPP and facilitate exclusive opportunities for collaboration with select advertisers.

With this partnership, WPP becomes the Lead Agency Development Partner to new creator-focused APIs, which will also build in its methods on brand safety and data signals.

These new solutions are intended to enable brands to gain deeper insights on creators, connect with diverse voices and have early access to these creators for their campaigns.

The two companies also said they would jointly create a training and accreditation program for WPP agencies that will secure priority access to content tailored to media and creative disciplines.

This program certifies that WPP’s talent will lead in the development of creative and media solutions on the TikTok platform.

Data moves to the forefront of this partnership to support campaigns and prove performance. GroupM, the media buying arm of WPP, and TikTok will work on integrating third-party verification vendors to develop first-party data controls and ensure alignment with the GARM Brand Safety and Suitability Framework.

The two companies will conduct market research to guide brands.