TikTok ban: data reveals sharp traffic decline and rapid shift to alternatives
93 comments
·January 19, 2025yannis
adt
Except...
>In what is perhaps the greatest irony ever, the operators of RedNote (known as Xiaohongshu) have decided to "wall off" US TikTok refugees fleeing to its service as the TikTok ban looms. The reason? The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) wants to prevent American influence from spreading to Chinese citizens... Many Chinese users are not happy with the influx as having "ruined" their ability to connect with "Chinese culture, Chinese values and Chinese news."
https://tech.slashdot.org/story/25/01/17/2146214/rednote-may...
gklitz
For anyone who actually has the app this claim comes of like someone going “The night sky is yellow, trust me, don’t look up!”
That is to say it’s so obviously false if you want to see for yourself just download the app.
yannis
I think we need to wait and see. So far is speculation by commenters, as per the link you posted. From a technical point of view IMHO just some geofencing is necessary in order not to change the user experience too drastically for RedNote Chinese users.
floydnoel
that is all based on some reddit comments, very fake news you have shared here.
fintler
Late yesterday I was blocked, but today I have access again. Same source IP.
oidar
Same. The website allows browsing from my computer, but the app doesn't work very well. Haven't tried logging in yet.
xnx
Whoa. App is back for me now too.
fldskfjdslkfj
Will be ironic if TikTok is unbanned and Chinese apps only gain more popularity from this whole ordeal.
bobosha
Streisand effect in full display.
nickthegreek
TikTok is back up in the USA.
naveen99
And it’s back. Thank trump. I guess it’s time to binge on TikTok for another 90days.
maniacwhat
Whatever you think of the ban, it looks like the Republicans played the politics game very successfully here.
1. Get the ban to come in a day before Trump enters office. While the opposition is in power. 2. Get them to announce to all their market that trump will save the app. 3. Swoop in and save the day.
I think the young generation will remember Trump as the man who rescued tiktok.
halJordan
Certainly doesn't help that he has Shou Zi Chew kowtowing about how Trump saved the app and how Trump beat the "others'" unmitigated censorship
blackeyeblitzar
All the doomscroll apps are dangerous in terms of addiction and mental health. Even something with a less effective algorithm, like YouTube shorts, is incredibly addictive.
accrual
Counter-point: it's only "doom" if one configures it that way with their interaction. My FYP had a lot of positivity, pro-mental health, art, technology, and creativity type content on it. I actively filtered politics and other draining topics from my feed until I never saw it.
andrepd
Shareholder value is the only metric by which to evaluate human endeavour in 2025. I have zero hope that social media will be reigned in.
With tech oligarchs capturing the US government I have less than zero hope.
jonny_eh
Why not 100%?
a12k
It’s not only TT but all Bytedance owned domains. Also this is DNS so still lots of queries to see the new update page.
carstenhag
They monitor DNS stats, seems plausible some devices already had their tiktok domains cached
pimlottc
It’s a 85% drop in traffic, not access. People are still clicking on links, apps are still trying to connect, etc.
neilv
> (and Surge to Alternatives)
Jiminy Cricket, people. It's the weekend. Try to pretend you're not addicted. Let yourself get bored, and find something constructive to do.
(To put my money where my mouth is, no HN for me for rest of weekend. uBlock Origin reminder filter: `||ycombinator.com^$important`)
neuroelectron
Too bad they're just replacing it with Little Red Book. Funny how Obama legalized propagandizing the nation and China does it better and moves faster than our lazy, corrupt politicians.
TulliusCicero
Would love to see parity in these sorts of trade restrictions between the US and China. Me personally, then I'd have zero problems with TikTok being PRC-owned.
As it stands, foreign businesses operating in China are much more constrained, and laws they must comply with are enormously more invasive (e.g. censorship) than going the other way.
whimsicalism
i think this is a fun tack but personally i should be allowed to read and watch whatever i want even if China is a bad actor
TulliusCicero
Trade has been within the purview of the government, every government really, to regulate since basically forever.
It's not a content-based restriction, and yeah, trade wars can kinda suck, even for end consumers, no denying that.
whimsicalism
no, it’s a content and editorial restriction. it is not merely trade.
kyrra
For those that disagree with the above: Reciprocity is an important part of trade. China is making these choices, and the US is just putting things on a level playing field.
halJordan
That's the opposite of a principled stand (cicero is rolling in his grave over your use of his name to say this). It was, and is, boo hoo so terrible when the prc forces American companies to engage in forced sales, hand over the crown jewel IPs to local partners and "request" 50% ownership for the govt.
null
TulliusCicero
> It was, and is, boo hoo so terrible when the prc forces American companies to engage in forced sales
Reciprocity is a standard part of trade. If you come down on foreign businesses in your country, don't be surprised when the same thing happens to your businesses in other countries.
When Trump threatens tariffs, other countries threaten to respond in kind. That's how trade basically always works. There's a reason why free trade deals focus on reducing restrictions going both ways.
that_guy_iain
Those laws also apply to Chinese companies operating in China too. They have different stuff for outside of China. For example, TikTok's algorithm which is the general use one is AFAIK banned in China.
TulliusCicero
Correct, TikTok itself is banned in China, which makes the complaints about it being banned in the US even more hilarious.
robswc
Not to be on a high horse but I would actually love if these "scroll" apps all disappeared. So much time collectively (myself included) being spent on nonsense. I have a timer on mine to only let me spent 15 minutes and it just goes by so fast. I'll see something funny or something I like maybe 1/25 videos.
I know I should and could just delete it but my friends send me stuff and usually its pretty good stuff... it just hooks you in tho.
amazingamazing
I’ve never understood this take - no one is being forced to use this stuff. Don’t use it personally if you don’t like it.
loloquwowndueo
It’s designed to be addictive. It’s like saying nobody is forced to use drugs, alcohol or tobacco. There’s a reason those are very difficult to quit.
Aurornis
The weird thing is that labeling tobacco as addictive did actually seem to produce a decline in use. Labeling social media apps as addictive has, from what I’ve seen, given a lot of people an excuse to keep using it. The narrative has shifted toward “It’s not my fault I use it so much, it’s the company’s fault for making it addictive!”.
Something about moving the locus of control to a 3rd party opens the door for people to forgive themselves for using it so much.
Obligatory “not everyone”, of course, but I can’t believe how many conversations about social media use will immediately shift all blame to the company and downplay any individual choices.
Lionga
HN ist also addictive for many people. So lets also ban it, ok?
CubsFan1060
I think it depends on how you define a lot of stuff, and what you think the effects are.
If you think there are mental health effects, then it's really no different than outlawing anything with negative effects. "I don't know why we outlaw fentanyl. Nobody is being forced to use it. Don't use it personally if you don't like it."
If someone believes that these type of apps pose a real danger to people and society, it's a take that makes sense.
a12k
Some things are so incredibly harmful for society it is in the governments interest to regulate those things.
anon7000
Sure, but this isn’t remotely about that. If it was, we’d get some privacy laws and bans on Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts.
arccy
this is just the thugs being mad someone else is better than them...
ajsnigrutin
Looking at causes of death, soft drinks and fast food should be at the top of the list.
Somehow tiktok is banned and cigarettes are still legal.
lumost
I don’t think we should rule out the existence of digital heroin e.g. a digital experience so compelling that humans forget to eat.
Whether short form video is this or not is debatable, I’d be surprised if there wasn’t a digital media experience even more addictive.
InitialBP
That's particularly hard when you are in middle school/high school and all of your peers are using them. It might sound easy on principal children are cruel and something as simple as "You don't use tiktok, weird." could be social suicide for a teenager.
hombre_fatal
On the other hand, you have to ask if we want a society where you can generate massive wealth by peddling addictive substances to people.
And that's what "just don't get addicted" doesn't track.
I'm not sure where to draw that line when it comes to social media, but there's more to the convo and we probably do want to figure out where that line is or isn't.
robswc
What about it is confusing? I just wish they didn't exist. Even if I threw my entire phone away, it wouldn't change that so much time is collectively being wasted. Not to even touch on how its changed social gatherings. The minute something isn't "happening" the phones come out.
ronnier
We aren't capable of self regulation. Just look at what people eat and the size of the general population. In general we have no self control.
xnx
Should we outlaw refined sugar? There's definitely debate to be had on a lot of these things, but I'm having a hard time reconciling banning adults from using something that they personally enjoy and doesn't bother anybody else if you care about freedom/liberty.
rolothrow
I think TikTok was the cleanest of it, in that the social aspect was non existent (other than sharing links to friends as modern equivalent of small talk).
The most toxic combo is having fomo as a Hook (social for fb/Instagram, laboral for LinkedIn, etc) pushing you to check frequently and then being hit with the unending feed once inside.
At the very least I think we should separate the scroll apps and the social networks by law.
robswc
Yea. I'm not even arguing for any policies right now, just wishfully thinking it could all disappear. Policies are complex. Headcanon where short form content never existed is easy :)
jimbob45
Vine was the cleanest and the fact that anyone is using BlueSky or any Dorsey-endorsed product after he killed Vine is the strongest possible evidence of the Gell-Mann effect.
robswc
The fact Twitter bought Vine and just shut it down still blows my mind. Sometimes I wonder what things would look like if they kept it alive. At the very least, I don't think Elon could have bought Twitter.
agumonkey
It would be funny to have accounting of time spent on scrolling or mainly-scroll apps, per country or globally.
electrondood
"Infinite scroll" apps are harvesting your attention for ad revenue. That's what they are designed to do.
xnx
Absolutely. Also TV, newspapers, radio, streaming services, billboards, gas pumps, professional sports, etc.
whimsicalism
maybe we should have a system where you let the government know and it bans it for you.
but frankly, i’m sorry you struggle with addiction to this, i get healthy use out of it - and i would prefer not to be punished for your lack of self control
robswc
I'm not addicted to it. I have a 15 minute timer and it locks me out of the app after 15 minutes... and even 15 minutes feels like too much sometimes.
I'm not arguing that it should be banned. I'm saying I simply wish these scrolling apps didn't exist.
I'm sure people get a nice high from heroin. I wish that simply didn't exist too.
For the first time in history, US and Chinese can communicate directly with each other using the Red Note app, despite the language barrier. I think this is a great social experiment and if it continuous for sometime it will be interesting to get statistics on perceptions from both sides (perhaps through a detailed academic study). We need more understanding between nations and less war mongering.