TikTok back on store, terms apply

The Madras High Court has overturned a ban on TikTok video-sharing app after accepting its maker Bytedance Ltd’s petition for interim relief. 

The Chinese app will now be made available for downloads in the country — the world’s fastest-growing smartphone market — with certain safeguards until a final decision is made. 

One of the terms is that it should be free of obscene videos of children and women, the HC’s Madurai bench said.

The app was banned out of concern it exposed children to pornography and other disturbing content. “TikTok will update their privacy protection norms according to the court’s order and will address any complaint over content in three to 36 hours,” said K. Neelamegam, a lawyer representing the petitioner, a Tamil Nadu resident. “If TikTok does not meet the conditions set by the court, contempt of court proceedings can be initiated.” 

The court’s order is a victory, albeit temporary, for Bytedance, which told the court the ban was an attack on right to free speech of 120 million app users in the country.

Lands 1 In Soup

A college student, 20, has been arrested in Andhra Pradesh for posting a video on TikTok, in which he is seen ‘abusing and defaming’ Telangana CM KC Rao and the people of the state, police said.