TikTok Faces Potential Ban as Lemon8 Rises in the US
ByteDance's Lemon8 is pushed into the U.S. market as TikTok faces a potential ban.
Photo Source: TechCrunch
The United States, Canada and Europe have begun taking measures to restrict the use of TikTok, a short-form video app owned by Chinese company ByteDance. The goal is to minimize user data access from the Chinese government and possibly banning the app in the U.S.
India was the first country to ban TikTok in 2020, and according to The New York Times, more than two dozen states in the U.S. have banned TikTok on government-issued devices. In an effort to ban TikTok from personal devices, the House Foreign Affairs Committee voted in March to approve a bill that would allow a president to ban the platform entirely.
Concerns for the ban are not all about entertainment, but rather business. With the introduction of TikTok in 2020, many people took on roles as influencers and content creators. Now, these people rely on TikTok and the audiences they’ve grown on the platform in order to make an income. With the concept of “virality,” TikTok is usually where influencers hold the most followers, and therefore, make the most money. If the platform is banned, content creators will likely shift their focus to other platforms, such as Instagram and YouTube, but they are expected to face a large deduction in their income.
Influencers are not the only users that will take a hit if the app is banned. TikTok is used by companies to market their products or services. In fact, businesses have invested hundreds of thousands of dollars into growing their brands on TikTok specifically. According to Capterra, “82 percent of marketers say that a TikTok ban in the U.S. would have a significant or moderate impact on achieving their company’s social media marketing or advertising objectives.”
Photo Source: New York Post
As influencers and businesses shift their focus to other platforms in light of the potential ban, ByteDance has thrown a new platform into the mix: Lemon8.
Lemon8, a photo and video sharing social media app, was first launched in Japan in 2020 and recently entered the U.S. market. The app focuses on fashion, beauty, travel, food and wellness topics, offering suggestions, recommendations and get-ready-with-me videos under each category. Additionally, influencers can tag items directly on their posts with the prices, making it easier for followers to shop.
It appears that the goal for Lemon8 is not to compete with TikTok, but with other apps, such as Instagram and Pinterest that offer aesthetic content. If TikTok is banned, users may opt to build audiences on Lemon8 instead of Instagram, which has declined in popularity since 2022.
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