Kenyans on TikTok will no longer be able to hold live sessions on the video app. Kenya Film Classification Board on Friday, Sep 8 announced they have asked for the feature to be removed.
Ag CEO Joel Wamalwa in an interview with Lillian Muli on Citizen TV on Friday, Sep 8 announced that the board is taking measures to regulate content in the digital space.
He outlined what the talk with TikTok involved the Kenyan Government saying they wanted to deal with two things; content monetization and how content can be moderated on their platform.
“We engaged them to study their business model. After understanding the business model because of the public concerns raised on what goes to that particular platform we had to also draw the attention onto it,” he told
Wamalwa said certain Kenyan content violates Tiktoks community guidelines.
“We have asked them that the lewd character, sexualized content that is being uploaded on their platform should be taken down immediately.”
The CEO said even KFCB guidelines have been violated
“So TikTok has committed that content users on their platform will really need to ensure that their content really abides by the KFCB guidelines first before you upload them.”
He adds how this will be implemented;
“We’ve agreed that they are going to calibrate their system in a manner that once a content creator uploads his content there are some measures that are put in place and within that very process, a content creator will self-regulate, pick out some of those elements once you upload the document. So you tick like a box and you say it has passed a number of classifiable elements, you are cleared with them then on their back end they will start or enhance their algorithm to pick out content that violates the community guidelines.”
He says this will happen before the content ‘flies’ on TikTok.
“The danger is it could be a minor who has accessed such a feature coz many parents have issued their gadgets to their teenagers. So they will be doing that live program behind the parent’s back. What we’ve discussed with TikTok is that we have demanded that the live feature be disabled until they ascertain all the credentials that are originating from Kenya.”
He pointed out that the dirty content begins from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. TikTok will be taking down that content.
“So they’ve to tailor more of their algorithm and more resources to focus on Kenya during that particular period. If this feature violates community guidelines, should not run for more than one minute. It is stopped immediately. And that account is disabled.
Other instructions from the Kenya Government include: The IMEI that is running that feature that account should be disabled, It will be very difficult for a user to keep buying gadgets if your gadget cannot run with TikTok. You will discard the phone yes, and go buy another one then install that one again because it’s your bad behavior then again it will be disabled.”
Wamalwa also spoke extensively about how the platform will pay statutory fees. “When you want to plow back a certain amount of money to the industry to develop it, it cannot be done if a platform is operating in Kenya but revenues are paid elsewhere in other jurisdictions.”
He assured it is not the government’s intention to reverse gains made in the digital space, “We have made it deliberate that the -platforms- are going to carry close to 60 percent of local content, using their own algorithm Coz it’s very clear you go to other jurisdictions and you don’t get Kenyan content. How is this possible yet this is a universal platform?”