TikTok is up and running again... For now.
It's still unavailable for download in the App Store, for the record.
I'm likely not the first person to tell you this, but here's what happens if you open TikTok right now:
Remember, the app voluntarily “went dark” in the U.S., one day in advance of the official ban, which theoretically went into effect today – Jan 19th.
Jan 19th also being the day before the thanked President in the message – which is rapidly being delivered to 170 million of his constituents – takes office – Jan 20th.
Meanwhile, here's Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri, conveniently announcing a new app called “Edits” today - effectively Meta’s interpretation of ByteDance’s CapCut:
Edits is allegedly available for pre-order in the iOS App Store, according to the video and its caption, but I'm not seeing it on my end:
Edits will eventually be available for Android as well, and is expected to launch “in February”. No additional information was provided in the video.
The new Instagram update also shows you that a few friends of yours have liked other Reels on the platform, as you can see in the top right of my screenshot below:
I expect Like PCTs across the board to plummet on Instagram, once the public catches on to this.
I'll also point out that Mosseri is encouraging people to directly message this video to others in the final sentence of the Reel’s caption, when he encourages viewers to, “DM this to a friend who might be interested”.
Mosseri himself has said that Sends Per Reach (or what I’ve independently deemed, “Share PCT”) is the most important metric on Instagram.
This emphasis, combined with a delayed devaluing of Like PCT – thanks to publicizing your video likes to your friends – makes me even more confident that the secret to a viral Instagram Reel lies in optimizing for its Share PCT.
Worth flagging that the TikTok app remains unlisted on the App Store:
Also worth flagging that CapCut, the Bytedance-owned version of what Edits is attempting to replace (a mobile-friendly, video editing service that organizes all your projects, gives you trends and sounds for creative inspiration and so on) isn’t “available right now” in the U.S.:
Several subscribers are asking me what all of this means for comedians, influencers, creators, brands, their clients, and/or themselves.
We’ll wait for the dust to settle a bit more before weighing in more deeply, but this is all very strange and disturbing and public and eerie and dystopian and farcical and rotten and makes me feel something deeply uncomfortable in the core of my stomach.
My answer in the short-term: create a mailing list.
Every individual should strive to own the delivery of their messaging to their audience, and not rely on the whims of glorified commercial booking agencies and governing bodies who can radically manipulate – or outright shut off – their reach at will.
I recommend Substack.
Hope you're having a good weekend, in spite of it all.