the times | Thursday August 6 2020 1GT 3
times
be billions) for bringing Microsoft
and TikTok together. Few think that
this is likely.9 How does TikTok
make money?Mainly with advertising. Companies
wanting to market their
products through the app pay
big money to have their
advert posted amid users’
endless stream of videos. A
leaked document from mid-
2019 showed that an in-feed
video campaign on TikTok
cost a minimum of $25,000,
and if you wanted your video
to be the first that users saw
when opening the app, it would
be more than $50,000.
The company also offers the
chance to sponsor hashtag
challenges — digital meeting
points for TikTok users, who
post videos doing a certain
dance move or action under a
common banner. That would
set advertisers back $150,000.10 What’s in it for users?
Enormous fame and the opportunity
to make millions. “The financial
opportunity is huge, with more and
more brands interested in marketing
on TikTok,” Banham says. They are
attracted by the numbers. TikTok’s
biggest name, a 16-year-old girl from
Connecticut named Charli D’Amelio
who became famous for her intricate
dance moves, has 76.3 million
followers on the app. Her videos
have been liked 5.6 billion times.Above left: some of the
tiktokers who live at
the Sway House. Right:
Holly Hubert, who has
16.7 million followers.
Below: TikTok in the
time of coronavirusthis social contract for gaining services
for ‘free’,” Woodward says. “But as the
old saying goes, on the internet if
you’re not a paying customer, you
are the product.”5 Is there evidence to suggest
that TikTok co-operates
with China?No, but Byte Dance has previously
closed apps based in China that the
state said were causing too much
trouble. However, when it comes to
international markets, things seem
different. Byte Dance employees say
that the company has even gone to
the extent of moving personnel files
for staff based outside of China away
from the company’s offices in the
country to adhere to data regulations
in different jurisdictions.
“Byte Dance cut Chinese engineers’
data access to TikTok in June,” says
Arnold Ma, the founder of Qumin, a
Chinese digital creative agency based
in London. TikTok hired Roland
Cloutier, a former security expert for
big American companies, as its chief
security officer in March.6 I’ve heard that Microsoft
might buy TikTok. Why?There are multiple reasons. TikTok
needs an American buyer to placate
Trump, and Microsoft is best
placed. It’s a trusted brand and
Zhang Yiming, the Byte Dance and
TikTok founder, has a personal
connection to the company: he
used to work there. Microsoft has
strong security credentials in the
US and a decent team of engineerswho can ensure that TikTok’s data
practices are all it claims.
Many of US tech’s other biggest
names, including Google, Apple,
Amazon and Facebook, are embroiled
in an antitrust investigation by
members of Congress. Buying
the world’s hottest app would
only make their market power
stronger, so they are realistically
unable to do so.7 Why did TikTok want a
UK headquarters and what
has happened to that?The Microsoft deal being
negotiated is to run the business
in the US, Canada, Australia and
New Zealand. While it accounts
for a large proportion of the
business, Europe is not on that
list. A Microsoft-free TikTok
could well continue to exist
elsewhere, and TikTok would
need a home for that company.
TikTok says that it is
“evaluating the possibility
of establishing TikTok’s
headquarters outside of the US,
to better serve our global users”.
London has been mooted as the
leading choice, although nothing
has been decided.8 Why does Trump want a
cut of the deal?Never one to shy away from a quick
buck, Trump has said that the US
Treasury should get a matchmaker’s
fee (he told the press it should be
a “very substantial portion” of the
agreed amount, which would likelyMore and
more
brands
want to
advertise
on TikTok
TikTok — and should they be?
“One of the things we’re starting
to see is, because the level of virality
you can achieve on TikTok is so rapid,
you see people already launching
off-platform careers,” says Timothy
Armoo, the founder of Fanbytes, a
social media company that runs the
Byte House, which is the UK’s first
TikTok “Hype House” (more on these
later). Some of the talent Armoo
manages have launched beauty and
clothing lines, and D’Amelio launched
a make-up line with her elder sister,
Dixie, in late July.
That is not the only way creators
can make money. TikTok has recently
launched its Creator Marketplace, a
venue where companies can broker
endorsement deals on the app with its
bigger users, and professionals are also
able to post livestreaming video, for
which they can be given donations in
an in-app currency.11 Who are its biggest stars?
D’Amelio is the app’s queen bee, but
Britain is well represented by 23-year-
old Holly Hubert from Guernsey, who
goes by the name Holly H and has
16.7 million followers on the app.
There are cult heroes who have large
followings, however. Joe Allington, an
87-year-old grandfather from Lichfield
who performs skits with his family
involving him stealing biscuits without
them knowing, has 2.3 million fans.
And a group of builders who posted
on the app under the username
@SparksandTarts managed to
drum up support from more than
70,000 people.
What’s the secret to finding success
on TikTok? “Understanding the space
and what the audience want to see
from TikTok,” Banham says. “They
have created fun, easy-to-consume
content which shows off their huge
personality and is constantly positive.
If your kids are spending lots of time
on TikTok, they could be the next
biggest star of their generation.”12 What’s up with
Hype Houses?You may have heard about so-called
Hype Houses, named after the first
one launched by tiktokers in the US.
Think of them as a much glossier,
glamorous student dorm: a handful
of impossibly beautiful people decide
to live together, using a mansion as
a base from which to post videos that
make them the envy of their fans.
“They’re created because, when done
right, they can create this hub of
content where everyone can grow
their audiences,” Armoo says. It also
improves creators’ bargaining power
with advertisers if they have a
collective brand behind them.
Not everyone enjoys the
collaborative nature of the houses,
however. Neighbours of TikTok stars
living at the Sway House, a $10 million
mansion in Los Angeles, have
complained about the state in which
the young inhabitants leave the
property, and the constant chanting of
“Chug, chug, chug” from parties.13 How do I sign up?
Head to your chosen app store
and type in the word “TikTok”.
If you want to try it, do it now
before it’s banned here.COVER: DIXIE D’AMELIO/REDUX/EYEVINE. BELOW: SWAYLA/INSTAGRAM; H
OLLY HUBERT/INSTAGRAMp
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