Deputy Alan Kelly welcomes u-turn by TikTok
Social media giant will now attend Oireachtas Committee Meeting
TikTok will attend the Oireachtas Committee on Media later this month, having initially rejected an invite from North Tipperary Labour TD and commitee chair Alan Kelly.
Chairperson of the Oireachtas Media Committee and Labour Party TD Alan Kelly said: "I very much welcome the decision of TikTok to now attend our Oireachtas Committee meeting on September 23rd.
“They confirmed this in writing to our Committee this morning.
"This follows an engagement that I had yesterday at the Irish Presidency Conference on Online Safety for Children and Young People with their representative.
"At and following our panel discussion yesterday I asked that TikTok reconsider their previous decision not to attend. In particular I did so as yesterday TikTok were able to outline much of what they currently do and plan to do when it comes to online safety.
“They outlined that they spend approximately €2 billion a year on online safety.
"I appreciate their change of heart and I look forward to full engagement with our committee on September 23rd," Deputy Kelly said.
A spokesperson for TikTok said: "We are pleased to be in a position to accept the committee's invitation.
"From the outset, we offered to meet directly with the Committee to brief them and answer their questions."
The company said it had committed to appearing publicly before the committee once discussions with gardaí and Coimisiún na Meán had progressed.
It is understood that TikTok believes these discussions have progressed sufficiently, putting them in a position to appear before the committee, RTÉ reported.