TikTok

Since its acquisition and rebranding in 2018, TikTok has become one of the fastest growing platforms in the world. Moreover, it's the first Chinese-developed platform to find mainstream international success, carving its own niche in the global short video industry.

In the first comprehensive exploration of TikTok, Kaye, Zeng, and Wikström provide a history of the emergent genre of short video and situate the platform within the cultures and controversies that have accompanied its dramatic growth. They provide an extensive overview of TikTok's functions and uses, the diverse markets in which the platform operates, and the issues of governance that have impacted its expansion. Once thought to be 'just for kids', the authors illustrate how TikTok is further transforming platform cultures and the dynamics of broader creative industries. TikTok, the authors argue, represents an evolutionary step in the way culture is produced and consumed on digital platforms.

This timely book is essential reading for students and scholars in media and communication studies and for anyone who has been captivated by the global growth of TikTok and short video.

Acknowledgements

List of Tables

List of Figures

Introduction: Creativity and Culture in Short Video

1 A Brief History of the Short Video Industry

2 The TikTok Platform Infrastructure

3 TikTok Communities

4 TikTok Activism

5 The TikTok Economy

6 TikTok Governance

7 The Future of TikTok

Notes

References

Appendix: Interviews

Index

“The rise of TikTok as a short video platform is intriguing, particularly in the context of the American and Chinese ecosystems. This book offers an excellent primer to understand the technological, economic and socio-cultural drivers of this platform. Through the lens of user creativity and critical platform analysis, readers are enlightened about TikTok’s coevolution with other mainstream platforms and their ever-changing affordances. An eye-opening introduction for students!”
José van Dijck, University of Utrecht

“Wonderfully compact and to the point. In one of the first comprehensive accounts of the short video turn, the authors succeed in grasping the very essence of TikTok.”
David B. Nieborg, University of Toronto

“the book is a timely contribution to social science literature and a crucial read for both academics and those from outside academia who are interested in exploring the history of short video and TikTok.”
European Journal of Communication

D. Bondy Valdovinos Kaye is Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Leeds.
Jing Zeng is Senior Research and Teaching Associate at the University of Zürich.
Patrik Wikström is Professor of Communication and Director of the Digital Media Research Centre at Queensland University of Technology.