TikTok has lost its legal battle and will not be excluded from European antitrust law. The company has already said it will comply with the new rules. However, the app could still face a possible ban in the EU for violation of child protection laws.
In Europe, TikTok was deemed large enough to be subject to the Digital Markets Act (DMA) antitrust law. The company Bytedance had challenged this decision in court, but Bloomberg reports that the company lost the case.
Bytedance could still appeal the ruling, but has not announced any plans to do so. Instead, it said it has already begun working to comply with the DMA.
Possible ban in the EU
Even if TikTok complies with the DMA’s requirements, which aim to prevent anti-competitive behavior, it could still be banned because deliberately encourages children to use it. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the app as “dangerous”.
One of the potentially illegal acts is offering gift cards to incentivize users to watch videos, which potentially falls under the illegal encouragement of children to use the app for longer periods than normal.
TikTok, with its massive influence and increasingly younger user base, represents a crucial battleground for data protection and content regulation. It will be crucial to watch how these legal decisions impact not only TikTok, but the global digital landscape.
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Source: www.iphoneitalia.com
