According to the PTA, Pakistan has lifted ban on Tiktok after signing an agreement with Tiktok management not to take action against immoral content. Pakistan’s telecommunications authorities said Monday they lift TikTok’s ban, eleven days after the South Asian nation’s telecommunications authority blocked the country’s popular short video app due to problematic videos on the platform.
However, the authorities warn that TikTok must actively moderate the content in its app otherwise, it will permanently ban in the country.
The Telecommunications Authority said it was lifting the ban after contacting TikTok’s top management, who confirmed that the content moderate in accordance with “Pakistani public norms and laws”.
According to the authorities, TikTok has around 20 million monthly active users in Pakistan.
TikTok’s senior management team also confirmed that blocked users had a recurring pattern of uploading “illegal” content. Telecommunications authorities said in a statement.
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“Restoring TikTok is strict, as long as the platform is not used to distribute obscene / obscene content and public values are not abused. PTA will be restricted from permanently blocking the app if these conditions are not met,” the authorities said.
Pakistan banned TikTok in the country earlier this month after issuing a “final warning” for the app in July.
Pakistan concerns on Tiktok
In its warning, Pakistan expressed serious concern about some of the videos posted on the platform. The nation said some of the videos were “immoral”, “obscene” and “vulgar”.
Following the ban, TikTok has assured it will work even harder to moderate content and has also offered to invest in the country if the ban is to be lifted.
The ban also expressed the concerns of some people (via Techmeme). This warned that the move was Pakistan’s ongoing effort to impose top-down censorship on the country.
Earlier this year, Pakistan unveiled some of the world’s most widespread internet censorship measures. This will have serious implications for US technology companies operating in the country.
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He later lifted the rules after Facebook, Google and Twitter, along with other companies, threatened to leave the country.
Neighboring India has banned TikTok along with hundreds of other Chinese apps. In India’s case, the ban imposes due to cybersecurity concerns.
Before the ban, India was TikTok’s biggest market for consumers outside of China.
TikTok remains banned in India and is still in danger of ban in the US. Its limitations can severely hinder the growth of TikTok, but its use remains a phenomenon for now.
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Pakistan says TikTok will return to its country for now. But can block again in the future if the company doesn’t keep its promise to moderate. “The PTA will restrict from blocking the application permanently if the conditions not meet,” the agency wrote.
