Heena Sharma Blog

An Indian ban on downloading TikTok , one of the world's most popular mobile applications, has heightened industry worries that technology companies could now face increased scrutiny and regulatory challenges in one of their most important markets. TikTok, which allows users to create and share videos with special effects, has become a sensation in India, where it has been downloaded by nearly 300 million users so far, according to analytics firm Sensor Tower, out of more than 1 billion installs globally. Its runaway popularity has attracted criticism from some politicians, however, in a largely conservative society that can have a low boiling point for even moderately racy content. In the case of TikTok, 15-second dance clips and memes dominate the platform, although some videos do show youngsters, some scantily clad, lip-syncing and grooving to popular tunes. Local media have also reported several accidental deaths when users attempted to make videos with knives and gu...

It is open season on all short video services as well as social media apps, which, according to the government and the judiciary, are supplying inappropriate content. While those who support freedom of internet on Wednesday criticised banning of TikTok from Google and Apple stores as an infringement of right to choose, sources in the government said the steps were taken only after repeated warnings on weeding out foul content fell on deaf ears. The road ahead is going to be a tough one for TikTok and other similar apps as now the government is directly working with both Apple and Google to ensure they do not get any further downloads. “ The government at the moment may not be able to stop the already existing users from posting on the app but it has ensured that they do not get any further downloads. The decision to ban TikTok was taken only after repeated requests to take down objectionable content did not get the desired results. Videos of young children and other similar...