TikTok Withdraws Lite Rewards Program from EU Over Child Safety Fears
TikTok has agreed to permanently withdraw its ‘Lite Rewards’ program from the EU in response to EU Commission concerns about its impact on users, especially children.
Formal proceedings were opened in April 2024 by the Commission against TikTok under the Digital Services Act (DSA). This relates to the social media firm’s “Task and Reward Program” of TikTok Lite, which allows users to earn points while performing certain “tasks” on TikTok, such as watching videos and liking content.
TikTok Lite is a separate version of the TikTok app launched in Spain and France in April 2024.
The Commission believes the Lite Rewards program could infringe Articles 34 and 35 of the Digital Services Act (DSA), expressing concerns that it was launched without prior diligent assessment of the physical and mental risks it entails, especially those related to the addictive effect of the platforms, and without taking effective risk mitigating measures.
This is a particular concern for children, given the suspected lack of effective age verification mechanisms on TikTok.
To ensure compliance with the DSA, TikTok has now committed to permanently withdraw the Lite Rewards program from the EU and will not launch any other program which would circumvent the withdrawal.
The Commission emphasized that these commitments are legally binding, meaning that any breach would immediately amount to a breach of the DSA and lead to fines.
Thierry Breton, EU Commissioner for Internal Market, commented: “The available brain time of young Europeans is not a currency for social media – and it never will be. We have obtained the permanent withdrawal of TikTok Lite Rewards program, which could have had very addictive consequences. The DSA is in full swing.”
The DSA came into force for all online platforms in the EU on February 17, 2024. These TikTok proceedings represent the first DSA case closed under the DSA. It is also the first time the EU Commission has accepted commitments from a designated online platform against which is had opened formal proceedings under the DSA.
TikTok Practices Under Scrutiny
Separate EU Commission proceedings against TikTok under the DSA launched in February 2024 are still ongoing. This case is assessing whether TikTok has breached provisions relating to the protection of minors, advertising transparency, data access for researchers and the risk management of addictive design and harmful content.
In the US, a lawsuit was filed by the US government against TikTok and its parent company ByteDance at the start of August 2024 alleging widespread violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
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Western governments have also expressed major concerns about TikTok parent company ByteDance’s links to the Chinese Communist Party, leading to the app being banned on official devices.
In March 2024, the US Congress approved a Bill compelling ByteDance to divest the social media platform or face a complete ban in the US.
Image credit: L-51 / Shutterstock.com
