by Jeff Della Rosa (JDellaRosa@nwabj.com)

With the looming threat of a TikTok ban, marketing agencies and influencers are bracing for a big change. In April, President Joe Biden signed a law requiring ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, to divest the business or face a U.S. ban of the platform.

According to Forbes, 7 million businesses advertise on the platform, and 1 million influencers earn a living by making videos on TikTok. The creator economy is a $250 billion industry expected to double by 2027. This year, 92% of brands look to increase their influencer marketing investment.

According to eMarketer, TikTok is a popular choice for brands to reach a wider audience, but it’s not the only platform for commerce. Brands using TikTok’s e-commerce platform, TikTok Shop, often sell on multiple platforms. However, replicating the success of selling on TikTok might pose a challenge for some, especially those benefiting from the platform’s viral product reviews.

Firms prepare clients for possible nationwide TikTok ban

LITTLE ROCK – Attorney General Tim Griffin today issued the following statement after the Union County Circuit Court denied a motion by TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, to dismiss Griffin’s lawsuit against the social media platform:

“I applaud the court’s decision to allow our lawsuit against TikTok and ByteDance to proceed. This marks the third time this year that a lawsuit I have brought against a social media platform has cleared this important legal hurdle.

“TikTok argued that the court did not have personal jurisdiction over the defendants in this case, that our claims under the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act should fail, and that the claims are preempted. The court rightfully rejected all three arguments.

“Arkansas is leading the way in holding social media platforms accountable for how they represent themselves to customers and the type of content and algorithms they contain. I will continue to stand up for Arkansans and ensure TikTok keeps our private information out of the hands of the Chinese government.”

To read a copy of the court’s decision, click here.

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