TikTok returns to US app stores
TikTok is available again to download in the US. The social media app had disappeared from Apple and Google’s storefronts following its brief ban last month. Around 100,000 Americans have used ‘sideloading’ to get around the ban and install the app in the interim.
However, Bloomberg reported on Friday (14 February) that TikTok has finally returned to app stores. While it’s now available to download through official channels, a ban still looms. President Donald Trump postponed the enforcement of a law approved by Congress after coming to power.
Last week, Trump stated that the 75-day stay of execution could be extended. It is believed that TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, is currently in talks about selling its US operations.
Google says Search is mostly irrelevant to YouTube
Google Search accounts for less than 1% of views on YouTube, according to a member of the tech giant’s legal team. Attorney John Schmidtlein revealed the information in court as part of its efforts to throw out an antitrust lawsuit.
Google believes other companies are overstating the power of its search engine in driving clicks. Attorney Jack Stern, who was representing the video-sharing platform Rumble, claims rivals “cannot hope” to compete when YouTube videos are served at the top of search results.
Instagram benefits from TikTok’s upheaval
Instagram Reels is one of the big winners following TikTok’s early-year woes. The amount of creator content published on Instagram surged 16% in the week following TikTok’s brief ‘dark period’. YouTube got a similar boost (+14%).
This bodes well for Insta’s ad business, which is already worth $30bn a year and could grow a further 16% to more than $37bn in 2025. Marketing expert Becky Owen says Meta’s platform has been the “main beneficiary” of the disruption at TikTok HQ.
Google is close to fixing review counts bug
Google says it has mostly fixed a bug that caused reviews for local businesses to go missing. Many companies and SEOs had reported a sudden drop in review counts earlier in the week. By Friday, Google revealed that most of the issues had been resolved and urged anyone still affected to contact support.
In a statement, Google noted: “However, while we have made significant progress, some profiles may still experience a temporary lower count. These profiles should recover to pre-issue levels over the next few days.”
Channel 4 readies TikTok and Instagram push
Channel 4 is planning to publish content on Instagram and TikTok after a successful YouTube campaign. The UK broadcaster says the new channels will feature clips from creators promoting food and beverage brands.
Duolingo kills off its infamous owl
In a surprise turn of events, Duolingo announced its famous owl mascot had ‘died’ on Tuesday (11 February). The language learning app urged fans to “refrain from sharing why you hate him” in comments. It then signed off by stating it was important to respect “Dua Lipa’s privacy at this time."
Author bios created for SEO are “kinda awkward”
Google’s John Mueller says author bios created for SEO purposes can be “kinda awkward, not reassuring.” The search engine expert was responding to another user on Bluesky who stated that bios should be used to build trust with human readers and not game algorithms.
Mueller reshared the post and echoed the sentiment, adding that visitors can easily sniff out any bios that are used just for SEO. Rather than boosting visibility in SERPs, the tactic can actively harm trust and engagement.
Google tests new ‘AI mode’ in Search
Another week, another AI-driven feature being tested by Google. This time, the search giant is putting an ‘AI mode’ through its paces. This will allow users to ask open-ended follow-up questions after entering a query.
A leaked email about the feature stated the new mode would provide “easy-to-digest breakdowns” of information and serve links to authoritative content. It is reportedly using Gemini 2.0.
Click-through rates suffer when AI Overviews are shown
Google’s AI Overviews are harming organic and paid click-through rates. New research by Seer Interactive shows organic CTR has plunged to 0.64% when AI Overviews are shown. Just twelve months ago, that figure stood at 1.41%. Interestingly, organic CTR has actually increased year-on-year when Google’s AI feature is absent.
