TikTok says its proprietary video service has crossed an important milestone. The company says its platform has over one billion monthly active users. The immense popularity of TikTok has previously inspired YouTube and Facebook to launch similar services, which, however, have not gained such widespread popularity.
TikTok debuted as a service that allowed users to create their own short music videos based on songs available in the platform’s library. Over the past couple of years, the app has significantly expanded its functionality, becoming a social platform that brings users together based on their preferences. TikTok gained particular popularity during the coronavirus pandemic, when more and more people were looking for entertainment that can be accessed from the comfort of their homes.
Late last year, the future of TikTok was threatened by a decree by then US President Donald Trump to ban a number of Chinese services. This decree was later revoked by the incumbent President of the United States, Joe Biden. TikTok does not stop working to improve the platform. Among the latest innovations on the platform, it is worth noting an increase in the maximum video duration from 60 seconds to three minutes.
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Microsoft CEO talks about TikTok deal
Last year, under pressure from the US presidential Donald Trump, Microsoft nearly bought the popular Chinese video service TikTok. According to the late CEO Satya Nadella, it “was the strangest thing he was working on”.
At one time, President Trump demanded that ByteDance, which owns TikTok; literally separate and sell the American business for reasons of security of local users’ data. In August, negotiations began with Microsoft on the sale; but they came to naught in September – the deal was never completed.
Trump’s pressure predictably diminished after he left office in January, and by then no one had bought the popular service. Speaking at the Code Conference in California; Nadella said he was considering bringing TikTok’s safety, child protection, and cloud services to the company.
āIt’s incredible. I have learned so many things about a lot of questions and a lot of people. First of all, TikTok came to us. We didnāt come to TikTok, ā Nadella said. According to him, TikTok got into the thick of events between the two states. President Trump had some understanding of what he was trying to do, but later everything got cancelation. The American government had a set of certain requirements, which later also disappeared.
Zhang Yiming, head of ByteDance, has been drawn to Microsoft for content moderation; and child safety services for products like Xbox gaming and LinkedIn, Nadella said.
While the head of Microsoft has no data on whether the US still intends to force ByteDance to sell the service. President Joe Biden’s administration has said it is addressing national security concerns.
