On Wednesday, April 24, a Madras High Court bench comprising Justices N Kirubakaran and S S Sundar conditionally lifted the interim ban on TikTok. The hugely popular lip-syncing mobile app is no more banned as long as users dont upload pornographic content.
Advocate Muthukumar filed a petition after the Madras High Courts April 2 order to the Centre to ban TikTok download. At the time, the court was concerned about pornographic content on the platform that encourages others, including children, from posting similar explicit content.
The HC said the app was dangerous for children, resulting in Google and Apple removing it from their app stores.
Most teens are playing pranks, gaffing around with duet videos shared on split screen with strangers. The children who use the said application are vulnerable and may expose themselves to sexual predators
Without understanding the dangers involved in these kinds of mobile apps, it is unfortunate that our children are testing with these apps, said the HC.
The Supreme Court also asked the Madras HC to complete its hearing on TikTok by Wednesday while the interim ban was in place.
Amicus curiae Arvind Datar, a third party who briefs the court with information, argued that banning an app doesn’t protect users, ensuring their rights does. Datar also referred to the provisions in the Information Technology Act that say platforms like TikTok are not held liable for screening content.
Senior Advocate Isaac Mohanlal defended TikTok saying the app has in-built security settings that prevent obscene or nude content from being uploaded. Mohanlal also said TikTok was suffering a daily loss of $500,000, and 250 employees were at risk of losing their jobs.
TikTok dangerous for children
Notably, the Madras HC said India does not have a legislation like US’ COPPA to protect children. The bench also said it was only worried about crimes against children.
In March, TikTok paid a record $5.7 million settlement after the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) found that it had violated the Childrens Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
COPPA places certain restrictions on websites and apps that allow pre-teen members. This act asks online platforms to not track information on child users, not allow them to post personal information, and make an effort to obtain parental consent.
However, because TikTok asks all its users to provide a full name, email address, phone number, biography, profile picture, and username, it was found in violation of COPPA.
The company released a statement saying, While weve always seen TikTok as a place for everyone, we understand the concerns that arise around younger users
Weve now implemented changes to accommodate younger US users in a limited, separate app experience that introduces additional safety and privacy protections designed specifically for this audience.
TikTok did not immediately clarify what these new changes would look like.
Indians celebrate lifting of ban
ByteDance, a Chinese company, acquired Musical.ly in November 2017. In August 2018, the company merged Musical.ly with TikTok, giving it more reach and a wider audience base.
TikToks sudden boom in popularity is almost unfathomable. The app has 17.11 million daily, active usersmore than Twitter, Skype, Snapchat, LinkedIn, and Reddit. It also has 100 million Generation Z patrons.
Whether one genuinely appreciates TikTok or not, the content that comes out of the app in India has become somewhat of a pop culture phenomenon.
People are generally amused at the dramatic, if not hyperbolic, acting and lip-syncing antics of TikTok users. There is even a Facebook page called Boys who Cry passionately on Musically India that has 81,955 likes and 84,857 followers.
Indians took to Twitter to celebrate the decision with declarations of love for TikTok and memes. They even used the hashtag #TimeToTikTok on their posts.
A Twitter user said, Tik Tok is back! I have seen my grand ma spending hours being online and watching! She has never been happy that much.
Garima Arora tweeted, I am sooo glad that tik tok is here again, now i can make videos again #TimeToTikTok.
Others agreed that no app can replace the entertainment levels of TikTok and thanked the creators of the app for their efforts in overturning the ban.
Rhea Arora is a Staff Writer at Qrius