TikTok ‘disappointed’ after being told by EU court it’s a ‘gatekeeper’ like other Big Tech firms

TikTok will be treated like other Big Tech firms over gatekeeping.

TikTok is “disappointed” to be among the companies included in the EU’s online “gatekeeper” category.

The Chinese firm’s parent company, ByteDance, was told by the European Union court this week that like Apple, Google and Microsoft it will have to abide by the Digital Markets Act’s rules.

It responded: “We are disappointed with this decision.

“TikTok is a challenger platform that provides important competition to incumbent players.”

ByteDance argued that it is a competitor to the likes of Meta.

But the judges concluded that it “succeeded in increasing its number of users very rapidly and exponentially”.

Adding that TikTok “rapidly consolidated its position, and even strengthened that position over the following years.”

Meanwhile, Elon Musk’s X – formerly Twitter – was just accused of breaching content rules set out in the DMA.

Last week, it was ruled that the billionaire businessman’s micro-blogging site had failed to provide a searchable and reliable advertisement repository.

The company also found itself in hot water for not giving researchers access to its public data.

X could be forced to shelve out 6 per cent of its global turnover and make changes to its operation – unless they can prove otherwise.

EU industry chief Thierry Breton commented: “X has now the right of defence — but if our view is confirmed we will impose fines and require significant changes.”

Other tech giants under investigation included ByteDance (TikTok), AliExpress and Meta Platforms.

In March, it was revealed that the EU was investigating Apple, Meta and Google’s compliance with the Digital Markets Act.

Speaking at a press conference in Brussels, Belgium, EU antitrust boss Margrethe Vestager said: “We suspect that the suggested solutions put forward by the three companies do not fully comply with the DMA.

“We will now investigate the companies’ compliance with the DMA, to ensure open and contestable digital markets in Europe.”