TikTok shuts down “addictive” rewards programme to meet EU´s demands

TikTok Lite shuts down “addictive” rewards programme to meet the demands of the European Commission after its raised concerns and fine threats. 

European Commission made TikTok shut down its “addictive” programme

TikTok Lite; a smaller version of TikTok which consumes less data, launched a Rewards programme, allowing users to earn points by increasing their engagement with the app. By watching videos, liking content, following creators and inviting friends to join, users can earn points and exchange them for vouchers or gift cards.

Shortly after its launch in Spain and France in April 2024, the EU Commission urged TikTok to provide an immediate risk assessment due to concerns about the programme´s negative effects on children and teens with a potential for addiction.

Under the DSA (Digital Services Act), large online platforms must report potential risks of new programmes to the EU Commission and adopt effective strategies to address them before the launch.

The European Commission stated; “Any breach of the commitments would immediately amount to a breach of the DSA and could therefore lead to fines.” The social media giant has now announced its commitment to permanently withdraw the TikTok Lite Rewards programme from the EU and abstain from launching any new programmes which would outmanoeuvre the withdrawal.

Lawsuits against TikTok for causing addictive behaviour

A recent survey by Backlinko revealed that TikTok has 1,04 billion monthly active users across the globe. The average time spent on TikTok is 95 minutes per day, more than on any other social media in history. The app is exceptionally popular among children and teens; 58 per cent of Gen Z aged 13-17 use TikTok daily.

Amnesty International Researcher Lisa Dittmer explained that TikTok is “designed to keep users engaged for as long as possible,” and at the same time “exposes children and young adults to serious risks of harm.” It has been reported that teenagers across the world have experienced depression, suicidal ideation, eating disorders, sleep disturbances and attention difficulties when using the app excessively.

Moreover, the Chinese-owned platform faced numerous lawsuits; just since May 2024, 455 social media addiction lawsuits have been filed against the app. In the USA, public schools in Seattle are now suing ByteDance (TikTok´s parent company) for targeting kids and causing addictions which reflects on the increased poor performance at school.

Despite the TikTok rewards programme only being available to users aged 18 and over and the app´s efforts to conceal graphic content, young users continue using the app with explicit content arising. Last year, the state of Indiana sued ByteDance for violating consumer protection laws by exposing young people to content promoting drug use, profanity and sexually explicit material.

The Commissioner for Internal Market, Thierry Breton expressed the potential damage of TikTok´s features; “The available brain time of young Europeans is not a currency for social media – and it never will be.”