TikTok has become immensely popular over the past year, particularly with the younger demographic. The app lets users record themselves lip-syncing and dancing to songs or dialogues from movies. TikTok has proven to be particularly popular in Asia but it’s now having to deal with some backlash in one of its biggest markets. Apple and Google have complied with a court order in India and removed TikTok from the App Store and Play Store in the country.
The Madras High Court ordered the removal of TikTok amid concerns that the app is being used to spread pornography. TikTok is owned by Chinese company ByteDance which approached India’s top court to have the ruling reversed. However, the appeal was dismissed. This complicates matters for TikTok and its over 120 million users in the country.
Given that the app has been removed from the App Store and the Play Store, those who still have the app installed on their phones will be able to use the service. However, if a user changes their phone or if someone wants to get in on the TikTok action for the very first time, they’ll be out of luck.
Following the preliminary ruling by the Madras High Court, the country’s information technology ministry sent an order to Apple and Google for removing the app from their stores. A spokesperson for TikTok said that the company has “faith in the Indian judicial system,” and that it’s “optimistic about an outcome.”
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