According to the official WeChat account of the “China Chamber of Commerce to the EU,” the European Commission released a statement on May 15 indicating that TikTok may have failed to meet certain obligations under the Digital Services Act (DSA), particularly in relation to the setup of its ad library and the disclosure of information. The Commission highlighted “significant shortcomings” in advertising transparency.

The Commission stated that TikTok did not provide key information such as the content of advertisements, target audience, and funding sources. Additionally, its ad library search function does not allow the public to perform comprehensive queries based on this information, which “seriously undermines the tool’s effectiveness in promoting platform transparency.”

The Commission emphasized that this finding is intended to formally notify TikTok of current compliance issues and does not constitute a final conclusion. If a violation is ultimately confirmed, the Commission may issue an official ruling and impose a fine of up to 6% of TikTok’s global annual revenue.

In response, TikTok stated it is reviewing the Commission’s findings and remains committed to fulfilling its obligations under the DSA.

In a statement, the company said: “While supporting regulatory goals and continuing to improve our ad transparency tools, we disagree with certain interpretations by the Commission.” It also noted that the relevant guidelines stem from a preliminary investigation and do not represent definitive public guidance.