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Some social media users concerned about TikTok’s impending ban have said they may move to Lemon8, TikTok’s sister app with similar features, but also developed by Chinese company ByteDance. That means TikTok could also be affected by the ban, unless ByteDance sells its platform. .
TikTok’s impending ban may also affect TikTok’s sister app, Lemon8. (Photo credit: Jakub … (+)
NurPhoto (from Getty Images)
important facts
A bill signed by President Joe Biden last year that bans TikTok unless ByteDance sells its platform would also ban Lemon 8, according to the House Energy and Commerce Committee, the congressional committee that pushed the bill. Director of Communications Christopher Klepisch told Forbes.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), chair of the Energy and Commerce Committee, talked about CapCut, a video editing app developed by Lemon8 and ByteDance, alongside TikTok during a March hearing on the bill. It listed the app as potentially leading to “foreign interference and manipulation.” last year.
Despite the potential ban, Lemon8 seems to have skyrocketed in popularity in recent weeks. It ranks as the #1 free app in the Apple App Store, a significant increase from last month when it wasn’t even ranked in the top 25. We turned to Sensor Tower, a market research company that tracks app downloads.
ByteDance strengthened the bond between TikTok and Lemon8 in November, as the ban loomed, allowing users to use their TikTok credentials to sign into Lemon8, which remains a separate app.
Forbes has reached out to ByteDance and Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, who introduced a bill to ban TikTok in the House last year, for comment.
What is Lemon 8?
ByteDance launched Lemon8 in Japan in 2020, several years before debuting in the U.S. in February 2023. The app is a social media platform that brands itself as a “lifestyle community,” and much of its content revolves around fashion, workout routines, and food. Lemon8 has some features similar to TikTok, such as a scrollable For You page and video posts, but Lemon8 also has features similar to Pinterest and Instagram, where users can share and edit photos and collages. When the app launched in the U.S., the New York Times reported that a marketing firm affiliated with ByteDance would pay creators to post content approved by the company to boost the creator community. It was reported that he had applied. The Wrap reported in October that Lemon8 has reached 12 million downloads in the U.S., triple the number of downloads a year ago, but ByteDance claims it has 100 million downloads on TikTok. That’s just a fraction of the more than 50 million Americans.
Why are Tiktok users paying attention to Lemon8?
Some social media users have posted in recent weeks that they are pivoting to Lemon8 as an alternative to TikTok. One TikTok video posted by creator @strawberriredd claims to be sponsored, although it’s unclear who, but the creator calls Lemon8 TikTok’s “backup app” and TikTok. states that people should download it if it is banned. The video has been viewed nearly 3 million times, with many users expressing confusion in the comments section as to whether Lemon8 will also be banned. Gianna Harner, a TikTok creator with more than 11 million followers, posted a video last week urging her followers to create Lemon8 accounts, suggesting it as an app that users should migrate to if TikTok is banned. ByteDance has notified users that it will be integrating the two platforms. Once a TikTok user signs in with their TikTok credentials, they will be able to transfer their followers to Lemon8.
main critic
However, some TikTok users are skeptical about Lemon8, expressing confusion as to why there was suddenly more content promoting Lemon8 in their TikTok feeds. “Can someone please tell me what Lemon8 is and why people are following me even though I don’t have it?” one confused user posted on TikTok in December In the end, it received over 300,000 likes and other users commented that they had received a notification that they had received followers on Lemon8. “Lemon8 must be trying to replace TikTok with the way it’s shoving it down our throats,” one user posted on It expressed confusion about receiving follower requests.
What is the situation with the Tiktok ban?
The ban on TikTok and Lemon8 could be weeks away and could take effect as early as January 19th if ByteDance does not sell the platform. The TikTok ban, first introduced as a bill last year and later incorporated into a massive foreign aid package that passed overwhelmingly in both houses of Congress, faces a legal challenge from ByteDance. , the Court of Appeals rejected the ban or challenge to the ban. Last month’s sales law. TikTok appealed the case again to the Supreme Court, which agreed to hear the challenge with oral arguments scheduled for January 10th. President-elect Donald Trump tried to ban apps himself during his first term, but changed his tune in 2024. He used the platform for his presidential campaign and amassed more than 14 million followers. President Trump last week banned TikTok while the legal battle continues, weeks after the president reportedly met with TikTok CEO Shou Zhi Chu at his Mar-a-Lago mansion. A court brief was filed asking the Supreme Court to extend the January 19 deadline.
Where else can Tiktok creators go if the app is banned?
As TikTok’s popularity has skyrocketed over the past decade, many social media apps have started competing by creating their own For You Page-style video sharing feeds. If TikTok gets banned, that could be where creators turn next. Some creators told NBC News they would move to Instagram, which has a TikTok-like Reels feature, or YouTube, which has a similar YouTube Shorts feed. After India banned TikTok in 2020, Instagram’s popularity skyrocketed, and a YouGov survey found that most creators said they would pivot to Instagram. Some influencers who can make a living from TikTok’s potentially lucrative Creator Fund told The Wall Street Journal they don’t even know if the ban, a long-standing political debate, will even come to fruition.
Read more
TikTok’s sister app Lemon8 is growing rapidly, but will it continue? (The Wrap)
Supreme Court agrees to hear challenge to TikTok ban (NBC News)
Lemon8 explains: ByteDance pushes new app that combines Instagram and Pinterest, quickly climbing the charts (Forbes)
A ban on TikTok is coming. The creators say you’ll believe it when you see it. (Wall Street Journal)
