LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — There are concerns from some Las Vegas small businesses about Congress considering a potential ban of the popular app TikTok.
The platform estimates about 5 million small businesses rely on TikTok to share content and connect with customers. One shop in the Arts District that shares videos to build their brand is Rockin Bettie. A boutique on 3rd and Colorado that sells rockabilly and pin up clothing as well as merchandise.
“We have customers that come in that only know us from social media,” Ashley Horner, manager at Rockin Bettie, said. “We just had customers this morning that were from Texas, that found us via TikTok.”
Rockin Bettie has more than 7,100 followers on TikTok, with one video reaching more than 40,000 views.
“A lot of my foot traffic is from folks who live in other places that would never know of us not at all,” Horner said. “We also ship worldwide too. So, if we didn’t have social media and things of that nature, we wouldn’t be able to get that out.”
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Lawmakers are considering a new bill to essentially ban the app in the U.S. following concerns over data security and foreign influence. The China-based company ByteDance owns the platform. The Republican-controlled House is expected to vote on the bill that would require TikTok to be divested from ByteDance or be banned nationwide.
“I think that would put a lot of people out of work because it has changed people’s lives,” Masha Diduk, a content creator and model, said. “So I don’t think it’s something that should be done.”
Diduk has two TikTok accounts with a combined following of more than 400,000 followers. She’s cashed in on some content posted but does not rely on the platform as her main source of income. However, she remains concerned about the impact to others in the community.
“Some people have put so much time and effort into this creative content, I don’t think it’s necessarily fair,” Diduk said.
The House of Representatives is expected to consider the bill on Wednesday. If it passes, questions remain how the Democratic-led Senate will vote on the bill.