Two of the most popular social media platforms are Facebook and TikTok.
While older generations tend to use Facebook, younger generations have adopted TikTok as their main social media platform.
Considering that TikTok is similar to Instagram, which Facebook owns, you may wonder if Facebook also owns TikTok.
Here’s everything you need to know about TikTok and whether Facebook owns it.
Does Facebook Own TikTok?
No, Facebook does not own TikTok.
Facebook is a U.S. company while TikTok belongs to a Chinese company named ByteDance.
The two are competitors.
Considering that Facebook and TikTok are competitors, it means that they’re both trying to appeal to the same audience.
Competition arises when two companies offer similar services to one another.
As such, Facebook and TikTok share a few similarities.
Here are some of the ways that Facebook and TikTok are similar.
1. Connectivity Goals
Both Facebook and TikTok share the goal of connecting people.
Facebook, arguably, set the foundation for social media platforms.
It introduced a place where people could connect with old friends or family members.
It also introduced a way to meet new people through groups and suggests friends based on mutual friends.
TikTok also brings people together.
Instead of doing so through friend requests and status updates, however, TikTok lets its creators amass their own followers.
They can interact with as many or as few people as they want.
Getting introduced to new people also happens on TikTok, but it’s through suggested reels and creators rather than through friends.
That’s because TikTok uses a “follower” system rather than a “friend” system.
Once you follow someone, you will see their updates.
As such, both Facebook and TikTok aim to bring people together.
How they do so is just a little different.
That said, Facebook’s other business, Instagram, is a bit more similar to TikTok than the Facebook site is.
Instagram also uses a “follower” system.
While you can also post and share videos on Instagram, it’s primarily a place to post and share photos.
Its goal is also to bring people together and connect them.
Both Facebook and TikTok are similar because they share the goal of connecting people.
2. Videos
Perhaps the biggest similarity between Facebook and TikTok is the fact that they both utilize videos.
While videos on Facebook are a bit limited, Facebook’s Instagram platform competes with TikTok.
Instagram is a site where people can upload photos and short videos.
They’re also able to do limited editing on their photos and videos to make them stand out from others.
When they upload videos to their accounts, their followers can easily access and view them.
For a while, videos on Instagram played second fiddle to photos.
That all changed with the emergence of TikTok.
TikTok’s whole platform revolves around videos.
Creators can post relatively short videos of whatever subject matter they choose.
There are several filters and effects that creators can use to make their videos more engaging.
Many TikTok creators also use a few seconds of a song in their videos.
TikTok is all about videos which is why it’s a bit stronger in this space than Instagram.
While you can still post videos on Instagram, it’s primarily known as a photo-sharing social media platform.
If Facebook ever wants Instagram to overtake TikTok, then they’re going to have to invest a lot more resources into its video system.
That said, both Facebook and TikTok are similar because they both use videos as a way for creators to share content.
3. Data Collection
Perhaps one of the biggest similarities between Facebook and TikTok is that they both collect and share the data of their users.
Both companies have come under fire for this practice.
Facebook went to court for an investigation of its use of data.
The company regularly collects data about its users to improve targeted ads.
This helps businesses target their marketing efforts so they can better reach their audience.
For users, it means they’re more likely to see ads that interest them.
As a result, they may be more likely to purchase something from that business.
TikTok has also recently come under fire for its collection and sharing of user data.
TikTok has refuted how much and what type of data they collect.
They state that the data they collect is for ads, not unlike Facebook.
They also state that they don’t collect as much data as other platforms.
The major concern with TikTok, however, is that it may have previously had direct ties with the Chinese Communist Party.
The concern was that TikTok was giving user data to the party.
TikTok has also refuted this claim by stating that its company split and the direct ties that they do have to the Chinese Communist Party are part of its other business that has nothing to do with TikTok’s operations.
Either way, both Facebook and TikTok have reputations for collecting user data.
4. Revenue
One of the reasons that Facebook and TikTok are popular is because they allow popular creators to earn money.
Facebook has a few ways that its users can earn money.
The biggest way is through streaming ads.
On Instagram, popular creators can have ads associated with their accounts which earns them money.
The more people who see those ads, the more money they earn.
Facebook also has its own marketplace.
People can post items for sale and sell them through the marketplace.
Sponsorships are another way to earn money on Facebook or Instagram.
When you have amassed enough followers, you often are considered an influencer.
Brands looking for people to talk about their products will contact creators with large audiences to promote their products.
The brand gets a relatively cheap way to reach a large audience and the creator gets paid to promote that product.
There are different ways to earn an income on Facebook and its affiliated businesses.
TikTok also has a way for its creators to make money, but they don’t offer quite as many options as Facebook.
The primary way that people make money on TikTok is through sponsorships.
Once they have enough followers on their account, businesses are more interested in reaching out and asking them to promote a product.
The TikToker might then post a video of them using the product or a review of it.
Their followers, trusting in the advice of the TikToker, are encouraged to buy that product.
That means more sales for the business and good money for the TikToker.
Some creators might even sign on with a business to regularly promote their products or services.
The problem with TikTok is that they don’t have a way for creators to take advantage of ad revenue yet.
TikTok has also been considering adding some form of direct shopping.
This is something that Instagram has been prototyping as well.
Until such an implementation becomes a reality, however, TikTok offers minimal revenue opportunities for its creators.
That said, both TikTok and Facebook allow their creators to earn money from the platforms.
Why Is TikTok So Popular?
Facebook considers TikTok one of its main competitors.
That’s because TikTok has surged in popularity over the past few years.
TikTok was originally known as an app called Musical.ly.
It was primarily a video-sharing app that allowed users to select from a variety of songs and soundbites and lip-sync to them.
ByteDance then bought Musical.ly and turned it into TikTok.
While they kept the lip-syncing feature, they also expanded the app to allow users to create all sorts of videos.
They also allowed users to import videos that they created originally on their phones.
With hundreds of millions of users now regularly using the app, you may wonder why so many have started to use TikTok.
Here are a few reasons why TikTok is so popular.
1. Celebrities Use It
Popular celebrities were among those who first started using TikTok.
Big-name celebrities like Jimmy Fallon started using TikTok as a means to engage audiences and fans.
It was an easy way for celebrities to make and post short videos that allowed them to quickly update fans, engage with fans, and essentially keep themselves in the spotlight.
The only way to see those videos and interact with them was on the TikTok app.
Fans of those celebrities made accounts so they could watch the videos and engage with their favorite celebrities.
Some celebrities also started kicking off some of the famous challenges that made TikTok so popular in its early days.
Whether it was the Ice Bucket Challenge or something similar, TikTok became known as a place where you could post challenges for others to attempt.
Being able to watch celebrities take part in these challenges was entertaining.
It also allowed fans to feel a bit closer to them since they were able to perform the same challenges that their role models were performing.
There’s no question that as soon as celebrities started to regularly use the app, TikTok’s popularity increased.
2. Influencers
Another reason that TikTok became popular is that it encouraged influencers to use the app.
Influencers who were already established on YouTube and Instagram were able to partake in paid partnerships with TikTok.
The monetary incentive enticed them to give the app a try.
Those who enjoyed the app brought their huge audiences with them because they started to post content on TikTok, too.
Influencers amass large audiences for various reasons.
They might share stories that followers connect with.
They might post content that people find entertaining or valuable.
Others simply post reviews of products that their followers have an interest in.
Whatever their niche is, influencers can make or break a social app.
TikTok was able to lure influencers to their platform who brought thousands of followers to the app with them.
Those followers started to use the app and some even started posting content and became creators themselves.
Today, influencers remain an important part of TikTok’s popularity.
TikTok has also given new influencers a chance to grow an audience.
It has allowed those with skills in video editing or creating trendy videos to flourish.
The more influencers there are on the app, the more chances the company has of getting more people to sign up.
TikTok is popular because of the large number of influencers and content creators on its app.
3. Local Focus
TikTok has a global reach, but it’s the focus that the app has on local content that makes it popular.
TikTok knows your general location so localized content will often show up on your feed.
If someone in your region starts a new challenge, then TikTok will promote it to you.
You’re then able to participate in the challenge, film yourself, and post it if you wish.
It’s because of this focus on local content that TikTok has also become popular.
It can sometimes be difficult to connect with others who are halfway across the globe.
They might post when you’re asleep.
That can make engaging with such creators difficult.
While you always have the ability to follow and engage with creators across the world, TikTok also introduces you to local creators.
That gives you a better chance and opportunity to engage with them directly.
You might even feel more connected with them because they live in your area.
In this way, TikTok is a bit more like Facebook.
It tries to connect you with your local community while not limiting the expansion of your reach either.
That makes it a great app for both users and content creators who are trying to build their brands.
TikTok is popular because it focuses on localized content for its users.
4. Easy Content Creation
A final reason that TikTok became popular is that it made it easy to create content and post it.
Editing videos is a laborious process.
You often need special software to make your videos look good.
TikTok removed the barrier to entry in video editing by offering numerous tools that creators can use right after they film a video.
Whether it’s adding in a filter, syncing a song, or tweaking the video in some way, TikTok made it easy enough that almost anyone can create and edit a video.
That means it’s easier than ever to become a content creator.
All you need is the right vision and timing to make a trending video that becomes viral on the app.
Because of how easy it is to create, edit, and post videos, more people now have the chance to become content creators.
Since there’s money to be had in content creation, there are a lot of people interested in trying the gig out.
However, other sites don’t hold your hand when it comes to content creation.
You have to invest money in things like editing software to make videos that are competitive enough to attract people.
That can make some people lose interest in the app if they just want to easily post content and start amassing followers.
TikTok has made sure that users can easily create content with its app.
This, in turn, has made users more likely to use the app over its competitors.
TikTok is popular because of how easy it is to create, edit, and post content on its app.
Conclusion
Facebook does not own TikTok.
It does, however, see TikTok as its main competitor and has changed some of its services to better compete with it.
There are several reasons that TikTok has become as popular as it has with easy content creation being one of the strongest.
NEXT: What Color Of Jewelry Goes With A Green Dress? (6 Options)