Malaysia grants TikTok, WeChat licenses under new law

Malaysia’s communications regulator has granted licenses to Tencent’s WeChat and ByteDance’s TikTok to operate under a new social media law aimed at combating rising cybercrime.

This legislation, effective January 1, mandates that platforms with over 8 million users in Malaysia obtain licenses or face legal repercussions.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) confirmed that messaging app Telegram is finalizing its license application.

Meanwhile, Meta Platforms, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has also started the licensing process.