TikTok's Thailand Ad Ban Hits 94% of Eligible Voters
TikTok blocks all Thai election ads affecting 50M users—94% of eligible voters. Platform's content restrictions signal broader Asian regulatory trend ahead of Feb 8 vote.
Social media platform TikTok announced Thursday it will block all election candidates in Thailand from purchasing advertising or monetizing their content during the campaign period leading up to the February 8 vote. The restrictions affect 57 political parties competing for 500 House seats, including 100 party-list positions.
Platform Extends Restrictions to All Candidate Accounts
While TikTok already prohibits political advertising and revenue collection from politically branded content globally, the new rules specifically extend to the personal accounts of all candidates participating in Thailand's upcoming elections. The platform, owned by Chinese firm ByteDance, will also partner with fact-checking organizations to validate political claims.
"Political content, whether from political parties or content creators including media, cannot be promoted by paid advertising at all," said Siriprapa Weerachaising, TikTok's manager for outreach and partnership. The company's in-house monitoring staff will remove disinformation and misinformation, anticipating higher volumes of misleading posts as the election nears.
The restrictions carry significant weight given Thailand's digital landscape. The country has approximately 50 million TikTok users, representing 94% of the nation's 53 million eligible voters. TikTok removed 4.4 million videos from its platform in the third quarter of last year for violating community standards, though the company did not disclose how many posts were classified as political content.
Regional Pattern of Platform Controls Emerges
Thailand's advertising ban reflects a broader trend of tightening content controls across Asian markets. Singapore's Online Safety Act has forced Meta to block foreign election posts, including content from Malaysian PAS members targeting the country's May 2025 elections. The Philippines has implemented mandatory AI disclosure requirements for campaign materials while banning deepfakes.
TikTok's Thailand strategy includes partnerships with fact-checking organizations Cofact and Thai PBS Verify to counter AI-generated election misinformation. This approach mirrors Singapore's multi-agency framework under the Ministry of Digital Development and Information for combating foreign interference.
"TikTok prohibits political parties from using advertising features or monetizing," confirmed Chanida Klaipan, TikTok's director of public policy for Southeast Asia. The platform expects to see increased volumes of AI-generated content and videos instigating hatred or violence as election day approaches.
Parties Face Organic Reach Challenge
The restrictions force Thailand's 57 competing political parties to rely entirely on organic reach strategies rather than paid promotion. With nearly all eligible voters present on the platform, candidates must now focus on building authentic engagement without the amplification tools traditionally available through advertising features.
The Election Commission will work alongside TikTok's fact-checking partners to monitor content throughout the campaign period. Any violations of community standards or attempts to circumvent monetization restrictions will result in content removal from the platform.
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