The IT Nerd

If you’ve ever gone down the #gamer rabbit hole on TikTok you’ve likely seen some pretty impressive and entertaining content—or perhaps you’ve even contributed some of your own.

TikTok is partnering with Enthusiast Gaming to launch TikTok Gamers Got Talent – a search for the best and most entertaining gamer on TikTok. e.l.f. Cosmetics has also joined on as a premiere sponsor, as part of their larger “Gameup” initiative, to support women gamers.

The exclusive series will follow gaming community hopefuls as they show off their talents and compete in front of millions of fans for a chance at a grand prize of $25,000! The call for submissions opens on April 27th, when gamers can submit videos on TikTok using #TikTokGGT and upload it to GamersGotTalent.com.

Premiering Sunday, May 9, 2021 at 7PM EST, the top 20 contestants chosen will compete in a seven-part series livestreamed on Twitch and GamersGotTalent.com, judged by a different celebrity panel each week made up of veteran gamers and influential TikTok creators including Chica, loserfruit,thesommerset, and toripareno from the Luminosity gaming team.

Please note that submissions are only open to residents of Canada and the United States between April 27 and May 2.

To find out more about Gamers Got Talent, and see the full list of judges, head over to the TikTok Newsroom for more details.

TikTok is facing a legal challenge from former children’s commissioner for England Anne Longfield over how it collects and uses children’s data:

The claim is being filed on behalf of millions of children in the UK and EU who have used the hugely popular video-sharing app. If successful, the children affected could each be owed thousands of pounds. TikTok said the case was without merit and it would fight it. 

Lawyers will allege that TikTok takes children’s personal information, including phone numbers, videos, exact location and biometric data, without sufficient warning, transparency or the necessary consent required by law, and without children or parents knowing what is being done with that information. The claim is being launched on behalf of all children who have used TikTok since 25 May 2018, regardless of whether they have an account or their privacy settings. Children not wishing to be represented can opt out.

In response, TikTok said:

“Privacy and safety are top priorities for TikTok and we have robust policies, processes and technologies in place to help protect all users, and our teenage users in particular. We believe the claims lack merit and intend to vigorously defend the action.”

This highlights the fact that TikTok still has a fair amount of perceived privacy issues. And they are quickly trending into Facebook country where I can see a scenario where #DeleteFacebook becomes #DeleteTikTok if they don’t quickly, transparently, and permanently address these issues.

Today, TikTok announced their FIRST North American wide marketing campaign called “Heads Up”, which highlights TikTok’s diverse individuals and communities, as well as celebrate their continued resilience and creativity this year.

The creative spot will feature Canadian creators including LeendaDong, Bomanizer, NotoriousCree, Lubalin, and Kissy Duerre, and also voiced by actress Gabrielle Union. A localized French version will also be launching featuring TV and radio personality Anne Marie Wittenshaw. The spot aims to turn the camera back on the community – showing emotions we’ve all collectively experienced.

Despite things still being strange in the world, this year, TikTok is looking ahead, becoming stronger, and more united as a community. Because no matter who you are, TikTok is a welcoming space where all kinds of people come together to be entertained. So whether you’re looking for an escape, to find a community, or opening your mind to new ideas and perspectives, you can start on TikTok.

TikTok is giving you front row access to one of the hottest fashion shows of the season. On March 18th at 10 PM ET/7 PM PT, TikTok LIVE will close out Fashion Month in style with the Labyrinth Runway Show hosted by Frankie Jonas.

An all-star group of TikTok creators Leenda Dong, Kristine Thompson, Xavier Martin, Zahra Hashimee,Riley Hubatka, WNBA players Te’a Cooper (Los Angeles Sparks), A’ja Wilson (Las Vegas Aces), Lexie Brown (Minnesota Lynx), and more will strut down the runway to live performances from global superstar Khalid, K-Pop and international star CL, and Montreal native Lubalin.

The runway show, which will spotlight diversity, body positivity, and promote inclusivity within the industry, will feature collections from renowned Black designers Victor Glemaud and Carrots by Anwar Carrots, and TikTok creator Joe Ando.

Throughout the LIVE stream, the TikTok community will have the opportunity to shop the plethora of looks styled by TikTok creator and stylist Tabitha Sanchez. 

More information about the Labyrinth Runway Show can be found in the TikTok Newsroom.

TikTok continues to work towards maintaining a supportive environment that enables their community to focus on what matters to them – whether that’s expressing creativity, finding community, or having fun. Part of this fun is engaging with content, sharing ideas, and connecting through comments. Their goal is to promote a positive environment where people support and lift each other up.

Today, TikTok announced two new features on the app that helps foster kindness in their community:

1. The Filter All Comments feature gives creators more control, allowing them to decide which comments will appear on their videos. When enabled, comments aren’t displayed unless the video’s creator approves them using the new comment management tool. This feature builds on their existing collection of comment controls that allow filtering of spam, offensive comments and specific key words.
2. In addition, a new comment prompt now asks people to reconsider posting unkind or inappropriate comments. It also reminds users about TikTok’s Community Guidelines and allows them to edit their comments before sharing. 

TikTok prioritizes creating a safe and positive app environment that allows creative expression to thrive. They will continue to strengthen their safeguards for users, build tools that provide people with more control to shape their experience, and keep listening to feedback from their community and experts.

Feel free to read more about this announcement on their blog post. 

Pop-country icon Shania Twain is joining TikTok just in time for International Women’s Day and to ask the TikTok community to join her in the #LetsGoGirls challenge, soundtracked by her immortal hit “Man! I Feel Like A Woman.” Users can demonstrate what they think is the best thing about being a woman by creating a transition or stitch to showcase what happens when they hear Shania utter her famous phrase “Let’s Go Girls.” 

TikTok LIVE Telethon

TikTok will also be hosting a special six-hour LIVE telethon today from 1:00-7:00 p.m. PST, in celebration of International Women’s Day, to raise money for organizations that are committed to providing support and resources to help women continue flourishing in their lives. Starting today, #ThanksToHer will be a featured banner on the Discover page, connecting their community to a schedule of TikTok LIVE programming featuring women creators and artists, including @mayemuskofficial, @lillysingh, LGBTQ+ TikTok Trailblazers @team2moms, @kaliuchis, @christaallen, and more.

Community Support

TikTok is a platform that empowers women to own their voice and showcase their best selves but we know there is still work to be done. TikTok will be donating $250,000 to non-profit organizations across the US and Canada that commit to the advancement of women’s leadership and economic empowerment globally. In Canada, TikTok will be supporting YWCA Canada’s Young Women’s National Leadership Program, and the Native Women’s Association of Canada’s Art Expression Project.

TikTok has agreed to settle 21 separate US federal lawsuits related to privacy. The lawsuits accused the company of “theft of private and personally identifiable data,” some of it from children as young as six years old. But before you say that this is a win for the little guy, it isn’t. NPR reports that the agreed amount of compensation for the privacy breaches is $92M, working out at a little over one dollar per user before legal costs. #Fail:

TikTok has agreed to pay $92 million to settle dozens of lawsuits alleging that the popular video-sharing app harvested personal data from users, including information using facial recognition technology, without consent and shared the data with third-parties, some of which were based in China.

The proposed settlement, which lawyers in the case have called among the largest privacy-related payouts in history, applies to 89 million TikTok users in the U.S. whose personal data was allegedly tracked and sold to advertisers in violation of state and federal law. 

“First, it provides compensation for TikTok users, but equally as important, it ensures TikTok will respect its users’ privacy going forward,” Katrina Carroll, one of the lawyers for TikTok users, said. “Social media seems so innocuous, but troubling data collection, storage, and disclosure can happen behind the scenes.”

The settlement is the result of 21 federal lawsuits filed mostly on behalf of minors — some as young as 6 years old — that claimed the company engaged in the “theft of private and personally identifiable TikTok user data.”

TikTok for its part released a statement that really doesn’t require me to say much of anything:

“Rather than go through lengthy litigation, we’d like to focus our efforts on building a safe and joyful experience for the TikTok community,” the spokesperson said.

I’ll say something anyway. That statement reads like “let’s pay as little as we can to sweep this under the rug and pretend that this never happened”. But maybe that’s the cynic in me making an appearance. One good thing to this settlement, TikTok has to alter its behavior:

Under the proposed terms of the settlement, TikTok will no longer record a user’s biometric information, including facial characteristics, nor track a user’s location using GPS data. TikTok also committed to stop sending U.S. users data overseas and the app said it would no longer collect data on draft videos before the content is published.

This still has to be approved by a judge, but while I am not a lawyer, I expect that to happen without drama. The fact is that TikTok settled this for pennies. The reality is that they really needed to be punished for their actions for more severely because you shouldn’t be allowed to take users data and do whatever you want with it. In short, TikTok got away with this.

Today, TikTok is releasing its 4th annual global Transparency Report. This report covers the second half of 2020 (July 1 – December 31) and provides visibility into the volume and nature of content removed for violating TikTok’s Community Guidelines or Terms of Service, with additional insight into TikTok’s work to counter misinformation related to COVID-19 and elections. It also includes how TikTok responds to law enforcement requests for information, government requests for content removals, and intellectual property removal requests.

This report includes a number of new data points, that haven’t previously been shared publicly including:

• Accounts removed
• Spam accounts and videos removed 
• Videos restored after they were appealed by the video’s creator
• Specific policy insights
• Ads rejected for violating our advertising policies

The report also includes key insights on TikTok’s continual work on countering COVID-19 and vaccine misinformation. Public service announcements (PSAs) on hashtags directing users to the World Health Organization (WHO) and local public health resources were viewed 38,010,670,666 times! 51,505videos were removed for promoting COVID-19 misinformation and of these videos, 86% were removed before they were reported to TikTok, 87% were removed within 24 hours of being uploaded to TikTok, and 71% had zero views.

You can see the full report HERE and a blog post that includes key insights HERE.

Today, TikTok Canada has announced that the Shopify integration with the Self-Serve Platform and TikTok marketing channel on the Shopify App Store are now available in Canada!

This partnership was part of a global effort previously announced in October 2020 and the updates are now available in Canada. This is great news for business owners of all sizes in Canada, as it is now easier for Shopify merchants to connect with and be discovered by TikTok’s highly engaged users.  

Self Serve Advertising Tools enable advertisers of all sizes and budgets to easily and efficiently use the TikTok advertising platform to place ads on their own. Introduction of new tools and features designed for small businesses that make it easier than ever to get started such as fast set up, flexible business, and creative tools to easily design engaging creatives. Key highlights include:

• Creative tools: TikTok has a suite of creative tools that enable every marketer to embrace the creativity and authenticity of the TikTok community. Everyone has the opportunity to tell their story, and TikTok’s creative tools help brands represent the most authentic version of their brand.
• Flexible budgets: TikTok Ads Manager was designed for fast set up for every level of expertise. Flexible budgets allow businesses to adjust their spending at any time.
• Performance targeting: Intelligent targeting enables businesses to get discovered by new engaged audiences.

Through the TikTok channel, Canadian merchants can access core functions of the TikTok For Business Ads Manager all from within Shopify. Highlights include:

• New, “1-click” pixel: Shopify merchants can install or connect their TikTok Pixel with the click of a button, making it quicker and easier to track conversions.
• A One-Stop-Shop for TikTok Campaigns: Merchants can create campaigns, target audiences and track performance in one place.
• Creative Made Simple: Everyone has a story to tell on TikTok, and the TikTok channel enables Shopify merchants to create native, shareable ads that resonate with the community. TikTok’s intuitive creative tools help turn merchants’ products into high quality TikToks in minutes.
• Advanced Matching: This new TikTok Pixel feature enables Shopify merchants to send hashed customer information to more effectively track conversions from TikTok ads and retarget audiences while maintaining user privacy. 
• Ad Credits for Merchants: Eligible merchants who spend $27 in 14 days will receive $132 in ad credits to jumpstart their first TikTok campaign.

For more information, please visit TikTok’s Newsroom Blog Post.

TikTok has been targeted by EU consumer protection groups for allegedly violating the bloc’s consumer laws and for failing to protect children from hidden advertising and inappropriate content:

European consumer group BEUC cited several issues in its complaint, among them its terms of service.

“They are unclear, ambiguous and favour TikTok to the detriment of its users. Its copyright terms are equally unfair as they give TikTok an irrevocable right to use, distribute and reproduce the videos published by users, without remuneration,” it said.

It said the company’s virtual item policy where users can purchase coins to use for virtual gifts for TikTok celebrities whose performance they like, contains unfair terms and misleading practices.

“TikTok fails to protect children and teenagers from hidden advertising and potentially harmful content on its platform,” BEUC said.

The company’s practices for the processing of users’ personal data are misleading, it said.

In addition to BEUC’s complaint, consumer organisations in 15 countries have alerted their authorities and urged them to act.

If TikTok thinks it had problems with America, the EU are far more aggressive and have a track record of scoring big wins against companies like Microsoft for example. Thus if I were them, they should really try to play nice with the EU or it will end badly for them.