A short video content hosting service that was initially released back in September 2016 now became the dominant player in the market with a growing userbase of more than 1 billion users spread across more than 150 countries.
TikTok is an international version of the Chinese app Douyin, which was initially released in 2016 by the Chinese technology company ByteDance. Today we all are familiar with the word TikTok was previously known by Musical.ly. An app where people would upload lip-synch videos. Later acquired by Bytedance and merged with their own app Douyin giving birth to a new app we all know today by the name TikTok.
Early Years & Acquisitions
Within the first year of the initial release back in 2016, the app has acquired more than 100 million users with over more than 1 billion videos view per day. The huge success became the major event for the Bytedance, and in 2017 they release it's international version named TikTok.
Musical.ly was first released in August 2014 and offers similar features as compared to Douyin. In 2017 Bytedance acquired Musical.ly for around $800 million - $1 billion USD.
In 2018, the data and users of Musical.ly has been merged with TikTok creating a single database of users making it an overall larger community. Which also means the ending of Musical.ly.
What is TikTok?TikTok is the most popular social media app that allows users to create, watch and share short videos. The app offers features like creative filters, background music, adding text, and much more. Available in more than 150 countries, and in more than 70 languages.
The popularity of TikTok even in the early years can be anticipated by analyzing the data provided by Sensor Tower which states the app had been downloaded more than 100 million times in 2018 on Apple's App Store.
The app hits more than 1 billion downloads globally in February 2019. APAC countries took over 45% of the total downloads.
BacklashesIn 2018, Indonesia temporarily blocked TikTok amid concerns about inappropriate content. In the same year, the Bangladeshi government banned TikTok as a part of the crackdown and removal of inappropriate content. In 2020, India banned TikTok along with other Chinese apps stating a threat to the security of the country. Other countries that banned TikTok at some point are Armenia, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Syria, and restricted in Russia.
Signature Feature CopiedThere were and are many apps that copied TikTok's signature feature. Instagram initially launched Reels in 2019 as TikTok's Rival. YouTube Shorts was released as a beta in India in September 2020 following India's TikTok ban, and it was globally released in July 2021.
TikTok Pro Accounts
Pro Accounts, is basically a dedicated analytics tool to help you better understand how your account and videos are performing and track audience engagement. Insights include weekly and monthly video views, follower growth over time, and stats of the trending videos.
Anyone can switch to a PRO Account. To switch open Profile Page > open Privacy and Settings tab > Manage My Account > Switch to Pro Account > and follows the steps.
TikTok Stories It's a similar features that we are all aware of, the signature feature of Snapchat, later copied by Instagram and now available on TikTok. This feature allows you to share videos up to 15 seconds on your profile that disappear after 24 hrs. Users can watch stories obviously and can also interact through likes and comments.
To create, tap + icon > record stories > click "Post to Story".
TikTok Now A signature feature of BeReal is now copied and available on various social media apps including TikTok. TikTok Now allows you to invite your friends to capture and share what the squad is doing at the moment using the front and back camera. You'll receive a daily prompt at the same time as your friends to capture a 10-second video or a static photo and share it with your friends.
For users 18 or older the time window is of 3 minutes to capture the moment. There is no time limit for anyone below 18 - to the accepted age limit.
TikTok LIVEA real-time space to be for real-time fun, expression, and creativity. You can access filters, effects, and camera control. You must be 18 years or older to go Live on TikTok. You can even earn money through gifts and diamonds which can be payout later in the form of real money.
TikTok Collection A new way to organize and curate videos you’ve added to your Favorites. Now you can organize your Favorites by grouping them into Collections! A similar feature called "Save" is available on Instagram but TikTok has taken it to next level.
Open profile > click Favorites icon > Create new Collection > Enter name (30 characters max) > Done.
TikTok ShopA eCommerce solution on TikTok that allows brands, businesses, and creators to sell products directly on TikTok.
New AdditionsThe addition of new features is way essential to keep the audience engaged. This update include text-to-singing voice effects, the introduction of TikTok avatars, and content level. Content level is more like age restriction applied to certain kinds of content.
TikTok PulseTikTok Pulse is a more enhanced editing tool available only for creators who meet certain criteria. To qualify for TikTok Pulse, you account must meet the following criteria mentioned below:
TikTok Creator Marketplace or acronym (TCM) is the platform that brings brands and creators to the same space to connect and collaborate. Creators older than 18 and have 10,000 or more followers can apply for TCM.
Revenue and User statisticsTikTok has a whooping increase of more than 120% in revenue and has generated an estimated of around $4.6 billion in revenue in 2021. As per the reports, the revenue from Q1-Q3 in 2022 is around $4.5 billion with a massive user base of around 1.4 billion users.
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