ByteDance has decided to voluntarily suspend TikTok Lite’s reward functions to collaborate with the European Commission, which is investigating whether the app complies with its obligations of transparency and protection of minors. TikTok Lite is a TikTok extension application that encourages users of the social network to watch videos and interact with them with a points and rewards system. It is currently in the testing phase in Spain and France.
It is precisely the reward mechanism that has caught the attention of the European Union, which has launched an investigation to understand the impact of TikTok Lite among minors and how the company has worked to mitigate the risks to which these individuals are exposed, including addictive behaviors. ByteDance assures that it always collaborates “constructively” with the authorities. For this reason, it has decided to suspend the points and rewards system.
“We are voluntarily suspending the rewards features on TikTok Lite while we address the concerns that have been raised,” he said in a brief statement shared on the social network. European Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton, has assured that he “takes note” of TikTok’s decision to suspend the rewards program in the EU. “Our children are not social media guinea pigs. I take note of TikTok’s decision to suspend the #TikTokLite Rewards Program in the EU. Cases against TikTok continue due to the platform’s risk of addiction,” he noted in a post where he added that the Digital Services Law guarantees the security of the European online space.