Sharechat Forced To Takedown Content After TikTok Issues Notices

Claiming exclusive rights over its content, TikTok on Friday has sent takedown notices to Sharechat after users uploaded TikTok videos on the Indian regional language social media platform. 

ByteDance-owned TikTok has claimed “exclusive copyright” over certain content because of a contractual arrangement between the app and creators. The video app said that it has the sole right to initiate and control legal action over this. 

Following the takedown notices, Sharechat was forced to take the videos down.

Users on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram also upload TikTok videos on their social media handles. It is not confirmed if they also got the notices. 

ByteDance Vs Sharechat

The two rivals, ByteDance and Sharechat, have been in an aggressive competition ever since TikTok entered India in September 2017. In November 2018, Sharechat had dragged TikTok to court for copyright issue after the Chinese short video app allegedly copied Sharechat’s design and was placing bids on keyword “Sharechat” on google Adword. 

Sharechat started with a fast-paced traction, proving that the Internet’s consumption needs to go beyond metropolitan and into Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. However, the growth has slowed down since the entry of ByteDance owned platforms TikTok and Helo. 

ByteDance in June 2018 introduced a social media platform similar to Sharechat called Helo to take on the homegrown social media platform. Helo reached 1 Mn downloads within a month of its launch.

Before Helo, Sharechat’s growth was accelerating at 20% month-on-month (MoM) basis. However, it plummeted to 6% MoM after the launch. The Indian social media platform claimed to have 40 Mn monthly active users (MAU), whereas Helo reached 25 Mn as per December 2018. 

TikTok too is doing well with over 200 Mn registered users. Not only this, the number of MAUs in India has touched 120 Mn.

In a short span, TikTok and Helo have created a market in India. TikTok claims that 39% of it’s 500 Mn global users are Indians between the age of 16 to 24. The firm has penetrated in Sharechat’s market and gained a strong foothold in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.