Was TikTok's Algorithm a Lie All Along?

For years, TikTok has described its FYP as a targeted feed driven by a top-secret algorithm that predicts users' interests based on their behaviour in the app. But, what if I told you TikTok has a secret button that can make anything go viral??

According to newly leaked internal documents obtained by Forbes, TikTok and ByteDance employees have access to a back-end tool that can instantly make a post go viral, using a practice known as “heating.”

Quoting the document:

The heating feature refers to boosting videos into the For You feed through operation intervention to achieve a certain number of video views.?

The total video views of heated videos accounts for a large portion of the daily total video views, around 1-2%, which can have a significant impact on overall core metrics.

?? Heating is Cheating??

TikTok has never publicly disclosed this. However, sources told Forbes that the platform has often used heating to entice influencers and brands into partnerships by inflating their videos' views, suggesting that this practice may have benefited some influencers and brands.?

Quoting Forbes:?

Heating also reveals that, at least sometimes, videos on the For You page aren’t there because TikTok thinks you’ll like them; instead, they're there because TikTok wants a particular brand or creator to get more views. And without labels, like those used for ads and sponsored content, it’s impossible to tell which is which.

Furthermore, sources reported that employees have abused "heating" privileges by boosting the view count of their own or loved ones' accounts in violation of company policies. One document revealed that an incident of this type led to an account receiving over 3 million views.?

?? TikTok Admits the Button Exists?

In response, a spokesperson for the company said:

We promote some videos to help diversify the content experience and introduce celebrities and emerging creators to the TikTok community. Only a few people, based in the U.S., have the ability to approve content for promotion in the U.S., and that content makes up approximately .002% of videos in For You feeds.

Following the report's publication, TikTok issued another statement, saying that the agreement with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. would dictate how heating occurs; only vetted USDS personnel would have the ability to "heat" videos, and that Oracle would ensure there wasn't another way to heat content.

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