Tiktok mulls curated content feed in bid to woo advertisers
Tiktok is said to be mulling the launch of a curated content feed as the Chinese social media app looks to assuage advertiser fears over harmful material posted to its platform.
The video-sharing firm is considering setting up a new stream that would contain carefully vetted content from so-called Tiktok creators or videos from professional publishers, the Financial Times reported, citing three people familiar with the matter.
Read more: Tiktok accused of secretly sending US user data to China
The move would allow Tiktok, which is owned by Chinese tech giant Bytedance, to charge higher advertising rates to premium brands.
The popular video app has come under fire in recent months over concerns about harmful content, cybersecurity flaws and potential censorship by Beijing.
In October the firm rolled out a new safety campaign after it emerged Isis militants had been using its platform to spread propaganda videos. The following month it was forced to apologise to a US teenager who was blocked from the app after posting a video criticising China’s repression of Uighur Muslims.
Meanwhile, research by Israeli cybersecurity firm Check Point last week revealed major vulnerabilities in the app that could have allowed hackers to break into accounts, manipulate content and reveal personal information.
However, a curated content feed could help to ease advertiser fears and allow Tiktok to cash in on its expanding user numbers.
The firm has racked up over 1bn users over the last three years and is now one of the world’s most downloaded apps.
Read more: Tiktok apologises after banning US teens behind Uighur video
The move to create a gated content stream would follow a similar initiative by rival social media firm Snapchat, which launched its Discover section in 2015.
Parent company Snap in October said that viewing time on the Discover feature — which charges higher rates for ads — increased 40 per cent in the third quarter.
Tiktok has been contacted for comment.