Destitute Syrian refugees who asked for donations by livestreaming in TikTok received only a third of the total donated amount, a report said.
Children of displaced Syrian families livestream in TikTok, begging for help. These children got the attention of some social media users and sent digital gifts with an equivalent cash value.
The problem was only a shard of the total donated amount was received by the refugees, a BBC report said.
Syrian Refugees Received Only a Small Portion
In a new investigation, BBC used some 30 TikTok accounts livestreaming from Syrian refugee camps. A computer program was used to chafe some information from the accounts.
The investigation found that each account received up to $1,000 an hour from viewers of the social media.
The destitute families, however, told BBC that they received only a small portion of the money.
TikTok declined to disclose how much it gets from digital gifts. The social media company only hinted that the amount is less than 70 percent.
TikTok Commission
As part of the test to track where the money goes and how much, a reporter from Syria posed as a refugee living in the camp.
The reporter contacted one of the so-called agencies affiliated with TikTok to open an account. Upon obtaining the account, the reporter started to livestream and begged for help.
A BBC employee in London sent digital gifts to TikTok amounting to $106 using another account.
After the livestream, the balance of the reporter in Syria was only $33. Apparently, Tiktok got the bigger slice of the deal
TikTok 'middlemen'
The BBC investigation claimed that TikTok has "middlemen" working with TikTok-affiliated agencies, also known as "live streaming guilds." These agencies were the ones who provided the refugees with material support, such as smartphones and gadgets necessary for livestreaming.
The middlemen, who are members of the guilds, admitted to BBC they earn from commissions they received from TikTok. At the end of each livestream, the middlemen earned their commissions depending upon the total amount of gifts received from the viewers.
BBC alleged TikTok used these middlemen as part of its strategy to build up their users base and increase the time spent on apps per user.
How much these middlemen earn is appalling. While the streamer gets a third of the gifts, the money transfer facilities skimmed some 10 percent and the middlemen got around 35 percent of the balance.
A streamer at the end of the stream received only a measly sum of $19 out of the total amount of $106.
The TikTok modus operandi as a whole is reminiscent of the Free Basics of Facebook. It differs only in the manner the company raked in money from its users.
Opposite of Fundamental Dignity
Marwa Patafta of Access NOW said the report has shown that Tiktok violated its own policy.
Tiktok, she said, claimed on its website that its priority is to ensure the community of users with "fundamental dignity and respect."
TikTok has done the opposite, she alleged.
The social media company has an obligation to abide by the guiding principles on business and human rights of the United Nations, she said.
