As you’re likely already aware, on Wednesday, March 13th, The House of Representatives approved a bill calling for ByteDance, the Chinese tech giant, to sell TikTok. If they fail to abide, the app will cease operations in the U.S.
LATEST TIKTOK UPDATE: APRIL 24, 2024
Although the bill passed and is set to become a law, ByteDance has up to a year to sell the company — and they’re already planning to fight the notion. They’ve stated previously they will block the implementation of the statute. In layman’s terms, the bill would then be taken up by the D.C Circuit Court of Appeals, meaning that it could be years before TikTok is truly banned in the US.
So what does this mean for brands and consumers alike? At the moment, we recommend continued posting on TikTok as per usual. However, it’s not a bad idea to have a plan B ready to go. Whether that’s another app to jump ship to or a process in place to save your previously-created TikTok content, next steps should be set in motion. In the meantime, we’re all in this together — and one thing is for sure: short-term video will remain the present and future of social media marketing, no matter the platform. Keep checking back to stay up-to-date on the future of TikTok along with the expert strategic guidance to keep you and your brand on top.
Read on for previous coverage and background surrounding the latest on the US TikTok Ban in April 2024.
LATEST TIKTOK UPDATE: APRIL 18, 2024
If the bill is approved in the House, it would allow the Senate to vote as soon as next week — leaving the bill on President Biden’s desk swiftly. Biden has previously stated that he would sign a bill if it passed with the majority on the ban or sale of TikTok.
With the future of the app up in the air, be sure to report back for any updates and strategic recommendations from our experts.
WHAT ARE THE LATEST UPDATES ON THE US TIKTOK BAN IN April 2024?
The recent TikTok bill passed with a 352-65 vote. While it still needs to be approved by the Senate to take effect, with such strong favor for the bill in the House, it’s not a complete implausibility to think the Senate would do the same. That said, there’s an unclear road ahead to even get to that point.
IF the bill were to become law, (again, still a very big ‘if’ at this point), the general sentiment is that ByteDance would likely sell TikTok — as a ban would result in ByteDance reaping none of the future value from its 170 million strong US-based users. Let’s analyze the latest updates on the US TikTok ban in April 2024, and what this could mean for you and your brand.
WHAT DOES THE TIMELINE ON THE US TIKTOK BAN LOOK LIKE?
Despite the clickbait-y videos circulating on TikTok, next steps and exact timing on the bill are unclear.
After a quick Google refresher on how a bill becomes law, timing estimates on a Senate vote range from as fast as 10 days after passing in the Senate, to dying before even making it to the floor. While the median is about 215 days, there’s no real average length of time when a vote by the Senate takes place, so timing is up in the air at this point.
WHAT WOULD A TIKTOK BAN IN THE US MEAN FOR BRANDS?
With many food and beverage brands continuing to invest efforts into building out successful TikTok presences, we are closely monitoring the status of the future of TikTok. Still, there is no need to make any changes at this time as there is no immediate impact to the platform coming out of the House vote.
Until the Senate vote occurs, we should continue to proceed with our content as scheduled. One benefit of Instagram following suit in the rise of short-form video content over the past few years is that any threat to TikTok still leaves us with a large platform to share our planned content.
RECOMMENDATION
Because of the many remaining “ifs” around a potential TikTok ban, we don’t recommend any immediate action for brands at this time. However, Blue Bear will continue to keep a close eye on the bill’s status and, correspondingly, any developments that could result.
In the event the bill is passed, Blue Bear will bring strategic guidance to the table, along with options and a recommended timeline as to how to navigate the ever-evolving social landscape. We can look to shift efforts to other platforms or explore any emerging platforms that see a rise in usage as TikTok users shift to spend their screen time elsewhere.
If there’s an appetite to start hedging our platform distribution in the near term, we recommend putting a bigger emphasis on YouTube Shorts. With a demographic breakdown similar to TikTok, YT Shorts would likely be one of the biggest benefactors in the event a ban does come to fruition.
WE’RE HERE TO HELP
If you’re looking for guidance and strategic recommendations surrounding the future of TikTok, enlist in the data-driven marketers at Blue Bear Creative. We’ve worked with food and beverage brands across the nation to develop sound, robust, and actionable strategies to build out TikTok and various social presences alike.
As a social-first marketing agency, we’ve been investigating the latest updates on the US TikTok ban in April 2024 and will continue to provide timely progressions as things unfold. Ready to chat? Drop us a line!
