Chinese short video app Douyin says no to political advertising
- Company says it wants to stay true to its ‘lighthearted’ feel that has proved such a hit with young people
- App is ‘exploring a variety of opportunities for brand partners’, executive says
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Social network TikTok – known as Douyin in China – said it will not allow political advertisements on the platform where people share playful video snippets as they would clash with its “lighthearted” feeling.
The app, which is owned by Chinese firm ByteDance and a proven a hit with teenagers, is dabbling with hosting paid advertising, vice-president of global business solutions Blake Chandlee said on Friday.
“We’re intent on always staying true to why users uniquely love the TikTok platform itself: for the app’s lighthearted and irreverent feeling that makes it such a fun place to spend time,” he said.
“In that spirit, we have chosen not to allow political ads on TikTok.”
The company, which has its headquarters in Southern California, lets advertisers sponsor hashtag contests or run short-form adverts in keeping with its short video style.
It recently began testing its TikTok Creator Marketplace where marketers can connect with popular users, or “creators”, at the service for advertising campaigns.
TikTok lets users overlay special effects on short video clips in which they express themselves in ways such as dancing or lip-synching songs.
“We’re in the early days of introducing and experimenting with different ad formats, and we’re exploring a variety of opportunities for brand partners,” Chandlee said.
“The nature of paid political ads is not something we believe fits the TikTok platform experience.”
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Online platforms including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube have been under pressure to prevent their platforms from becoming hotbeds of misleading political rhetoric and manipulation since social networks were used as tools to sway voters in the 2016 US election.
Facebook has tightened rules for political ads as part of efforts to prevent abuses.
TikTok said it has 500 million users worldwide last year, making it one of the most popular worldwide apps. It expanded its reach to the US with a merger with Musical.ly two years ago.
Teens have been flocking to the service, which allows them to create and share videos of 15 seconds.
