"The middlemen said they worked with agencies affiliated to TikTok in China and the Middle East, who gave the families access to TikTok accounts. These agencies

"The middlemen said they worked with agencies affiliated to TikTok in China and the Middle East, who gave the families access to TikTok accounts. These agencies are part of TikTok's global strategy to recruit livestreamers and encourage users to spend more time on the app." Fascinating and rare insight (to me) on how they acquire some of their users. Recruiting high value livestreamers isn't new (see Twitch) but the target here is radically different: people that don't even have a phone. That's one desperate (or at the very least aggressive) rollout. Like a Jehova's witness for social networks.