Could TikTok one day be banned in the European Union? This trick question was asked to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, who is currently campaigning for her re-election as head of the European Right (EPP) list, as part of a debate.
The subject is not taboo
Quoted by our colleagues from Politicothe manager believes that “it is not excluded”. She also recalls that the Commission was “the very first institution in the world to ban TikTok from our professional phones”. And adds without further details: “We know perfectly well the danger that TikTok represents”.
This statement comes as the Chinese social network is the subject of several investigations within the EU, notably its system which rewards users who spend more time on the platform. A functionality which could be contrary to the ban on functions intended to increase children’s habituation to the use of applications, recalls 9to5Mac.
Things are getting complicated for ByteDance’s service, especially in the United States. As a reminder, the American Congress passed a law which radically changes the destiny of TikTok there. Thus, the platform must be resold within nine months (plus three additional months by decision of the American president). If this is not the case, it will be banned from Uncle Sam.
Finally, let us note that this decision is not necessarily to the taste of users, but also of certain content creators for whom the social network serves as a source of livelihood. Aware of the concerns, Mark Warner, Democratic chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, stressed: “To these young Americans, I want to say that we hear their concerns. And we hope TikTok continues under new ownership, American or otherwise.” You can always reread our article which goes into more detail on this subject here.
