TikTok's US deal has closed and BookTok isn't going anywhere

R. S. Breed · 2026-01-24T11:04:00+00:00

The US joint venture deal for TikTok closed on 22 January, per CNN. The app stays, and so does BookTok. https://cnn.com/2026/01/22/tech/tiktok-us-deal-closes So after all the back and forth, it ends with a shrug as far as authors are concerned. If BookTok was part of your plan, it still can be. The whole saga was still a decent reminder that you don't own an audience on anyone else's platform. If a video brings readers in, give them somewhere to land that you control.

R. S. Breed Founder

8 months ago

The US joint venture deal for TikTok closed on 22 January, per CNN. The app stays, and so does BookTok.

https://cnn.com/2026/01/22/tech/tiktok-us-deal-closes

So after all the back and forth, it ends with a shrug as far as authors are concerned. If BookTok was part of your plan, it still can be.

The whole saga was still a decent reminder that you don't own an audience on anyone else's platform. If a video brings readers in, give them somewhere to land that you control.