Growing concerns over security fears related to data is prompting the governments of the U.K. Australia and US to call for TikTok’s ban. The popular social media platform is owned by ByteDance, a Chinese internet company that is based in Beijing.
The TikTok app, as per various reports, is able to access user data from devices, including contacts and geolocation. It can also access a user’s calendar, other running applications, wifi networks, as well as sim card serial number. However, TikTok has reiterated time and again that its data is stored outside China, and in Singapore and the United States.
Chinese Govt Can Seek Data Anytime
Moreover, the platform proposed to store American and European user data in third-party servers in the US, Ireland and Norway. But the proposal hasn’t been enough to assure critics, who fear that the Chinese state could manipulate TikTok’s recommendation algorithm.
Government officials from the US, UK and elsewhere believe that Chinese officials could demand access to TikTok’s user data, and source code under domestic laws, including the National Intelligence Law 2017, which states that all organizations and citizens shall support, assist and cooperate with national intelligence efforts. The social media platform says it has not received a request from the Chinese government for its data, and that if it did, it would refuse.
After the UK government banned the TikTok app from government phones, the US government is once again, wanting to separate the app from its Chinese owners. The White House is demanding the sale through the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS). But TikTok says this isn’t a solution. It claims the company’s own unusual gesture at self-regulation, undergoing an audit by Oracle, among other measures would offer more resolution.
Surging Global Ad Revenue
Despite privacy concerns, TikTok is expected to record a surge in its global ad revenue. It’s expected to exceed $15 billion in 2023, as per a report from WARC Media, with 75 percent of marketers planning to boost spending. TikTok’s ad revenue will defy the trend of the larger market slowdown and continue growing after its past two years of upward momentum.
Alex Brownsell, the head of content at WARC Media, outlined that TikTok plays a growing role in culture around the globe. “Its potential ad reach stands at a reported 1.05 billion, including 409.1 million users aged 18 to 24.” He highlighted that TikTok was the most downloaded app in the world in 2022 for the third consecutive year.
The report said that companies in nearly every sector are expected to increase their spending on TikTok in 2023; technology and electronics will see the highest boost, $2 billion, and not far behind is retail, clothing and cosmetics. The pharma and healthcare sector will see a more modest gain – from $409 million in 2022 to more than $700 million in 2023.
