In less than a month, on January 19, Tik Tok would be officially banned in the US. The platform came into the sights of the American authorities, who hit the ground running: either the application is sold to the United States, or it is permanently banned. The American government considers that the application represents a danger to national security due to access to the personal data of millions of Americans, writes Business Insider. If TikTok is banned in the US, the first to suffer are not the influencers, but those who use the platform for e-commerce. Many creators on TikTok have spent years building audiences on similar apps like YouTube and Instagram, where they can migrate easily. For online merchants on TikTok Shop, the alternative does not exist. “With TikTok, we had our first real foray into building an ecosystem that brings live entertainment and shopping together; a full-service ecosystem that brings together creators, affiliates, products and brands,» said Julian Reis, CEO of social-commerce agency SuperOrdinary. Other platforms, such as the live-shopping app Whatnot or the affiliate marketing platform LTK, offer robust tools for social commerce. Flip has created an app that is basically a shopping-only version of TikTok. Shopify offers a variety of tools for merchants to integrate with social apps, and Meta struck a deal with Amazon in 2023 to make Instagram and Facebook posts easier to buy. But none of these products offer the same range of services in one place as TikTok. TikTok Shop even has its own app store. At the moment, TikTok occupies a central place in the US social commerce market. But if the app is banned next month – an outcome it is challenging in the Supreme Court – a competing app like Instagram or YouTube could try to replicate some of its features to fill the void. «If TikTok gets banned, I don't think these people will simply stop buying from livestreams. I think they will move to another platform.” said William August, CEO of Outlandish, a company that works with brands on the TikTok Shop.
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