As TikTok gains new U.S. owners in Oracle, Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi-based MGX, the platform is moving quickly to centralize its marketplace. In an email to advertisers sent this week and reviewed by ADWEEK, TikTok announced it will soon require U.S. merchants to fulfill orders through the platform’s proprietary logistics services—effectively stripping brands of the ability to handle their own shipping.
The mandate, which begins phasing in on Feb. 25, marks the end of ‘Seller Shipping’ on the platform. By the end of March, any business selling to TikTok’s 170 million U.S. users must hand over their logistics to the company’s internal network or risk being cut off, according to the memo.