In light of a legal inquiry by the European Union, TikTok, a Chinese-owned video-sharing company, has announced that it is willingly ending the rewards program for its brand-new TikTok Lite app.
The program in question is a part of TikTok Lite, a version of the main app that uses less data and has a feature that pays users money for using the app’s features and engaging with TikTok content.
Following the European Commission’s announcement on Monday that it may impose fines and a forced suspension due to worries that the feature may encourage users to connect with the platform more, TikTok said that it was “voluntarily” stopping the rewards program.
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TikTok posted on X: “TikTok always seeks to engage constructively with the EU Commission and other regulators. We are therefore voluntarily suspending the rewards functions in TikTok Lite while we address the concerns that they have raised.”
Redesigned online governance and content moderation requirements by the European Union, known as the Digital Services Act (DSA), mandate that TikTok assume legal responsibility for lowering systemic dangers pertaining to mental health and child safety.
Nevertheless, the social media platform was unable to present a risk assessment study on the feature when its enforcers appeared.
This is noteworthy because the firm may face heavy fines under the DSA, which may equal up to 6% of its annual global turnover, should it be found that it violated EU legislation.
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