- The coronavirus health crisis and containment measures have fueled the popularity of the social network, which until now has been primarily a playground for young people.
- "In a few months, we have gone from a" light "video platform to a real social network that counts," explains Jonathan Le Borgne, strategy consultant on social networks.
- The success of the application worries today at the highest peak. An investigation was opened in the United States for "threat to national security" and the European Data Protection Committee announced a few days ago to examine the practices of the social network.
We film ourselves, we watch each other, we like ... Even if you are not a teenager, you have certainly already heard of TikTok, or even already watched one of these short videos broadcast on this mobile application which belongs to the giant Chinese ByteDance. The health crisis due to the coronavirus, and the containment measures have propelled to the summit the popularity of this social network, which was until now essentially a playground for young people. “The platform was particularly popular with Internet users for entertaining during confinement. It helped the French to overcome this difficult period, ”confirms TikTok France.
Its success is based on the recovery of the codes of the main platforms: "Vertical video consumption, messaging platform from a hashtag, appearance of filters, all while incorporating a new way of staging and producing its content", explains Jonathan Le Borgne, social media strategy consultant to 20 Minutes . “We can already say it, the application is now one of the platforms that matter. It fits into the very closed circle of social networks with global reach ”. With its exponential growth, TikTok is panicking the meters today, but the rise of the Chinese platform is also raising many concerns in the United States and Europe.
Powered by containment "with almost a billion users"
According to SensorTower, the company that measures the popularity of applications, TikTok exceeded 2 billion downloads worldwide in April, attracting many new subscribers with the pandemic. The app, which had 800 million users in its community in January, is now close to one billion members. "The period which has just passed has reinforced the craze for platforms, and especially for TikTok", confirms to 20 Minutes Fabien Laxague, spokesperson for TikTok France. The app has also exploded in France. “TikTok had 4 million users in 2019, and there in 2020, there were nearly 6.5 million. It's colossal, ”says Jonathan Le Borgne.
The containment measures increased the audiences of the social network, now joined by adults, whereas it was until now mainly popular with young people. “Of course we have a target audience who are the Millennials, but in itself, our audience spectrum is much wider. And this was revealed by the crisis that we have just experienced, ”specifies Fabien Laxague. "The arrival of certain celebrities [Messi, Ronaldo, Jennifer Lopez or Mariah Carey] as well as great influencers, who started making video formats during confinement, brought in a whole new audience, a new generation a little more aged adults ”, also decrypts Jonathan Le Borgne, one of the best connoisseurs of TikTok in France.
"We went from a" light "video platform to a real social network that counts"
Advertisers are also a little less reticent than before and are starting to invest a little more in the platform. Big brands like Coca Cola or Orangina are now present on the app. "The recent arrival of major French media such as Le Monde and L'Equipe also allows the social network to take on a new dimension by broadcasting different, less personal and more informative content," added the strategy consultant on social networks. “Finally, TikTok is reminiscent of the beginnings of Facebook and Instagram. The app uses the same strategy as its competitors, by forming partnerships to establish a certain legitimacy ”.
The social network has also taken a militant turn in recent weeks, mobilizing for major causes such as the fight against sexual harassment or even more recently the fight against racism with the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter. Nearly 8 billion videos have been exchanged under this keyword, which went viral after the death of George Floyd in the United States. "This is something quite new. Young people today use it as a militant tool, to claim to get messages across, especially in the debate for the presidential race. And at the same time, we see fewer karaoke videos, choreographies… In a few months, we have gone from a "light" video platform to a real social network that counts, "explains Jonathan Le Borgne.
Trump's meeting in Tulsa sabotaged by K-pop fans on TikTok? https://t.co/FpLko2g427
- 20 Minutes (@ 20Minutes) June 21, 2020An application "under high surveillance"
The success of the application, belonging to the Chinese giant ByteDance, and its exponential growth, worries today at the highest peak, even within governments. In early March, the US Congress passed a law prohibiting the use of the platform by employees of federal agencies, elected officials fearful that the company would transmit information to the Chinese government. An investigation for "threat to the security and interests of the country" was also opened last November in the United States. And a few days ago, it was the European Data Protection Committee (EDPB) which announced that it was examining social network practices. The European Parliament is particularly concerned about "the methods of collecting TikTok data".
“A year and a half ago, it was already said that TikTok was the haunt of pedophiles and that it was a dangerous platform for teenagers. The application has evolved today, but concerns persist, and the app still arouses great suspicion, rightly or wrongly, "explains Jonathan Le Borgne, who recalls that TikTok is the very first foreign application to set up also strongly across the Atlantic. "This is a first for a Chinese Internet platform, the success of web giants like WeChat having so far remained confined to Asia," he adds. "As for the problem of collecting personal data, this is a concern inherent in all social platforms".
Well aware of the distrust it can cause, the app is now trying to reassure its users. "We take privacy seriously and we are committed to ensuring that TikTok remains a secure network for our members," said TikTok France spokesperson. “We have strict community rules. They were updated in January to make them more accessible and easier for users to understand. ” On December 31, TikTok also published its very first transparency report. "It is a strong approach for a social network as young as ours, it shows the efforts we are making in this area", adds Fabien Laxague. The video application has also multiplied initiatives to convince its independence from Beijing by announcing the upcoming opening of a "transparency center" in Los Angeles in order to reassure consumers about the data collection.
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- By the Web
- Internet
- Teenager
- Personal data
- Confinement
- Coronavirus
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- Mobile app
- TikTok