According to BBC, TikTok is launching an unadvertised subscription service in the United Kingdom. All users over 18 years of age are entitled to a monthly fee of Pound3.99 for unadvertised employment. TikTok will request users to decide by 11 November whether to pay to remove advertising or to continue using it free of charge (but to display individualized advertising).
TikTok stated that its non-advertising service was designed to give users more options for their platform experience. However, according to social media expert Matt Navarra, this reflects the broader trend of companies to “pull no advertising service to their users”. TikTok started testing the non-advertising subscription service in part of the global market as early as 2023. In recent years, social media such as Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat have introduced similar subscriptions, and users have the option of paying monthly fees to reduce or completely exempt advertising. TikTok will gradually promote its unadvertised version of TikTok to British users in the coming months through a bullet window notice. “The ads on the platform have helped thousands of British businesses reach new customers, raise sales and create jobs, and our new, unadvertised service will give users more choice. The combination of the two offers greater flexibility to users while safeguarding economic efficiency.” Selecting a £3.99-a-month unadvertised subscription service, users will no longer be able to see the personalized advertisements that TikTok places. However, the content of a particular product or service issued by the creator for payment or sponsorship will still be seen, often with the “#ad” label. Users who do not subscribe to and choose to use TikTok for free will see individualized advertisements.
Through this month ‘ s subscription service, TikTok has joined a few fee-free platforms to avoid individualized advertising. While individualized advertising has been at the core of the operation of web-based platforms, new “consent/pay” models have now been introduced for many platforms. This optional accession mechanism has become a way for enterprises to comply with the British Data Protection Act, while also benefiting from users who refuse to follow their services and other websites. Media expert Matt Navarra said to the BBC: “We are moving from the Internet model that used to be used free of charge but would see advertising to the one that is now used free of charge but subject to individualized advertising or free of charge”. In his view, it was unlikely that many users would pay for TikTok or other platforms free of advertising services, and the practice of paying for online privacy was becoming more regular. “We’re moving towards a two-tiered social network,” Navarra said. “One for those who can afford more control and privacy, the other for all others.” More broadly, subscriptions are becoming an increasingly common part of platform experience – – Users are often advised to pay monthly fees to obtain personal data validation badges (e.g., on Instagram or X) or access AI functions.
