Online Reporter
NEW YORK. — TikTok is back on line in the United States after a dramatic day on Sunday when some Americans woke up to find that their favourite social media app had been blocked.
A few hours later users started receiving a pop-up message telling them the app was back on line.
“Thanks for your patience and support. As a result of President Trump’s efforts, TikTok is back in the US,” the message read.
“You can continue to create, share, and discover all the things you love on TikTok.”
A lot of drama unfolded during the hours TikTok was offline.
TEENAGER NABBED FOR SETTING FIRE TO A BUILDING
A 19-year-old man, who was arrested in Wisconsin for allegedly setting fire to a building on Sunday, cited the TikTok ban as his motive, according to the police department.
The building included the office of Representative Glenn Grothman, who voted last April in favour of the bill to ban TikTok.
The man, whose name has not been released, “is being held at the Fond du Lac County Jail and a charge of arson is being referred to the Fond du Lac County District Attorney’s Office,” according to the news release.
TIKTOK A HUGE ECONOMIC BEAST
TikTok is the most commonly used platform by brands that engage in influencer marketing, according to a recent report by the Influencer Marketing Hub, which also found that 50% of influencer marketers believe TikTok delivers the best return on investment for short-form video content.
It has become a giant in the evolving creator economy, which includes millions of social media personalities who make money through brand deals, platform monetization and audience subscriptions.
Research from Goldman Sachs last year predicted that the total market opportunity of the creator economy could reach US$480 billion by 2027.
META INTRODUCES CAPCUT LOOKALIKE
The ban on ByteDance apps meant CapCut, one of the most popular short-form video editing apps in the US app stores, was also not available on Sunday.
On the same day, Meta introduced its own CapCut lookalike: an app called Edits.
“Now there’s a lot going on in the world right now, and no matter what happens, we think it’s our job to create the most compelling creative tools for those of you who make videos — for not just Instagram, but for platforms out there — as we can,” Instagram chief Adam Mosseri said in a video on Instagram and Threads.
Mosseri said the app won’t launch until next month.
TIKTOK HAS FACED CHALLENGES ELSEWHERE BEFORE
The US isn’t the first country to limit access to TikTok.
In 2020, India banned TikTok, along with a slew of other Chinese-created apps, citing similar data privacy reasons as the United States.
Other countries that have banned TikTok include Iran, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. — NBC News.
