TikTok has implemented a ban on posting links to competing e-commerce platforms on its own platform, effective September 12, 2023, in order to promote its TikTok Shop business. This follows TikTok's termination of its Shopify partnership, which previously allowed the inclusion of products on profiles in the United States.
In short, any brand or seller who is not registered with TikTok Shop will no longer be able to attach links on their profiles to various social media platforms. This also means that during live sales broadcasts, they will no longer be able to post links from competing e-commerce platforms.
Because TikTok aims to create a closed model, establishing itself as a more comprehensive, all-in-one e-commerce platform, it seeks to close the gaps that sellers or brands typically use as a link to various e-commerce platforms.
ByteDance also implemented this measure on its affiliated platform, Douyin, in China in 2020. This measure prohibits sellers and brands from using links to Alibaba's Taobao and other competitors' platforms, forcing users to use only ByteDance's platform.
Furthermore, according to a report by The Information in San Francisco, TikTok Shop is expected to lose more than $500 million in the US market this year. Therefore, TikTok has implemented this measure to ensure long-term revenue for the platform. Meanwhile, ByteDance executives hope that TikTok can eventually rival the profitability of its sister app, Douyin, achieving $200 billion in sales by 2028.
