Consuming social networks for free and without any type of advertisement is something that has been disappearing for years. Bombarding with advertising to later launch a payment model is something that applications like Instagram learned very well, and now TikTok is beginning to follow in its footsteps.
TikTok Ad-Free. TikTok began testing a payment model back in 2023 in the United Statesan idea that did not spread beyond American territory. The company now makes official TikTok Ad-Free in UKopening the ban to expand it to the rest of the regions.
How it works. The company has announced that, “in the coming months”, users over 18 years of age will be able to gradually subscribe to the new advertising-free option, TikTok Ad-Free. Those who continue using the free version will see no changes, and will see personalized ads.
The price is £3.99 per month, in exchange for not seeing a single ad on TikTok and our data not being used for advertising purposes. It’s something that sounds familiar to us.
Instagram Vibes. In 2024, Meta gave his ultimatum: either it was checked out or our information would be used for advertising purposes to show us the relevant advertisements.
On Instagram they went a step further, since paying users not only got rid of ads: they got a verification badge and got more “love” from Instagram in terms of the visibility of their own account if they were a content creator.
Why is it important. TikTok is in the crosshairs of the European Commissionas you consider your ad library to be non-compliant the Digital Services Law. The social network will have to be especially careful when implementing measures related to ads and data collection, even more so if billing is involved.
In the same way, the fact that TikTok has given free rein to its subscription monetization model (although its application is not immediate), closes a circle of services that we use on a daily basis and that, whether we like it or not, force us to checkout if we do not want to see ads. And if not, Tell them to the paid version of WhatsApp.
The big question. If you’re wondering when TikTok Ad-Free will arrive in Europe, the answer is that we don’t know yet. What seems inevitable is that this ends up happening, after the test in the United States and its progressive implementation in the United Kingdom.
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