Sameer Singh, TikTok’s North America head of advert gross sales, is leaving the corporate, in response to an inside memo reviewed by ADWEEK. The announcement comes as the favored video-sharing app faces mounting strain, with a U.S. ban set to take impact on January 19.
Singh joined ByteDance in 2019 and has been a central determine in steering TikTok’s North American advert enterprise. He’ll stay with the corporate till the tip of February. Previous to his function at TikTok, Singh served as GroupM’s South Asia CEO.
“Sam will return to India on the finish of January and stay accessible to help the NA staff by means of the tip of February,” wrote Blake Chandlee, TikTok’s president of worldwide enterprise options, within the memo that was shared with TikTok’s inside gross sales groups. “Notably, all through 2024, Sam has led our groups in the united statesand Canada by means of an unprecedented political setting, devoted to defending our unbelievable customers, creators and the enterprise companions that use TikTok each day.”
Singh’s work at TikTok started with overseeing the corporate’s monetization efforts in India, the place he helped handle the aftermath of the nation’s ban of the app in 2020, in response to the memo. He additionally performed a key function in increasing TikTok’s presence in markets like Brazil, Southeast Asia, and the Asia Pacific area.
Wanting forward, TikTok plans to “instantly start the seek for a brand new chief to supervise our NA enterprise,” the memo famous.
Making ready for a possible ban
Singh’s departure comes at a pivotal second for TikTok, with a U.S. ban looming amid escalating nationwide safety issues. The U.S. authorities has threatened to ban TikTok except ByteDance divests from the app, citing fears that the Chinese language authorities might entry consumer information.
The ban’s potential influence on advertisers and creators could possibly be vital. Entrepreneurs’ methods for efficiency promoting could also be disrupted, and it could possibly be more durable for folks to find manufacturers. Moreover, the aggressive panorama for digital promoting could possibly be reshaped.
The choice has additionally raised broader questions concerning the authorities’s management over tech platforms when it comes to the steadiness between nationwide safety and free speech. The Supreme Court docket is about to listen to arguments on January 10 relating to the potential ban. In the meantime, TikTok is about to look at CES subsequent week, the place executives will talk about the very best methods for entrepreneurs to make use of its platform.
