TikTok Shop Intellectual Property Policy

Overview

This TikTok Shop Intellectual Property Policy (the "Policy") outlines how third-party intellectual property rights ("IPR") are protected within TikTok Shop. This Policy supplements TikTok's Community Guidelines and, TikTok Shop's Creator Terms of Use, and Seller Terms of Service (collectively, "TikTok Terms").
Any TikTok Shop seller or creator who uploads content, promotes or sells products or services, or takes any other action that infringes the IPR of others, or encourages or induces infringement, shall be subject to any and all enforcement actions set forth in the TikTok Terms, the Seller Enforcement Policy, and the Creator Performance Evaluation Policy.
Enforcement actions include, but are not limited to:

• Removing or restricting your product listings or TikTok Shop permissions.
• Suspending or terminating any TikTok user accounts.
• Temporarily or permanently terminate access to your TikTok Shop account.
• Temporarily or permanently withholding any balance, or cancelling of any transaction, associated with a seller's violation.
• Any additional actions deemed necessary by TikTok, in its sole discretion, including but not limited to initiating civil or criminal proceedings independently or in conjunction with Intellectual Property Rights (or IPR) owners.

This policy is not intended as legal advice. For any questions regarding laws and regulations, we encourage all users to seek independent legal advice.

This policy is updated periodically. Sellers and creators must check this document regularly to ensure compliance with our current policy.
TikTok Shop reserves the right to make changes to any policy at any time without prior notice. Please review our TikTok Shop Policy Center updates section on TikTok Shop Academy for the most up-to-date policy.

Prohibited Practices

TikTok Shop expressly prohibits the unauthorized use of any third-party intellectual property rights. This includes, but is not limited to:

Counterfeits

• Advertising or selling counterfeit products.
• Displaying unauthorized brand names, trademarks, or logos in any form of content, including, but not limited to, product detail pages, videos, and livestreams.
• Intentionally blurring or hiding any brand name or logo.
• Behaviors or written or verbal messages (including text, image, sound, and video) that imply the sale of counterfeit products.

Trademark Infringement

TikTok Shop users are prohibited from using third-party trademarks on their physical products, in their listings, in their content, or shop name without proper authorization. A trademark is a word, symbol, design, sound, or a combination of these (such as a brand name or logo) that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others. Generally, trademark laws exist to prevent customer confusion about the source of goods or services. Trademark Infringement also includes the usage of third-party trademarks in content and product descriptions. Refer to our Intellectual Property Infringement article for examples of how to reduce the risk of accidentally infringing on the IP rights of others.

Example: “TikTok” is a registered trademarks that we use for many of our products and services. Other TikTok trademarks contain both pictures and words, such as the "TikTok" logo.

Copyright Infringement

TikTok Shop users are prohibited from using third-party copyrighted material without proper authorization. Copyright is a legal right that protects original works of authorship (e.g., photos, text, music, videos, etc.), giving copyright holders control over how their creations are used, reproduced, distributed, or performed. Copyright ownership is automatic and does not require registration, notice, or publication for a copyright to exist.

Knockoffs

Commonly known as "copycat" products, these products closely resemble the logos or trademarks of authentic brands with registered trademarks but are not identical to them. Knockoffs are typically lower in quality or priced lower than the original products they imitate and may violate a third-party design patent.
Knockoff products may unfairly or dishonestly imitate or infringe the legitimate rights of owners of branded, authentic products, and in some cases, violate local laws. The promotion or sale of knockoff products is prohibited on TikTok Shop.

Infringement of Patents, Utility Models, Industrial Designs, and Layout Designs

Utility Models protect objects, utensils, devices, or tools that, as a result of a modification in their arrangement, configuration, structure, or form, offer a different function or provide a utility advantage
Industrial Designs encompass both industrial drawings and industrial models: (i) industrial drawings protect the combinations of figures, lines, or colors incorporated into an industrial product, giving it a distinctive appearance (ii) industrial models protect the three-dimensional shapes that serve as patterns for manufacturing a product, providing it with a specific appearance without imparting any technical effect.
Layout Designs of integrated circuits protect the three-dimensional configurations of electronic circuits in which all components are integrated into a semiconductor material.

Rights of Publicity or Personality Rights Infringement

TikTok Shop users are prohibited from using the name, image, or likeness of a third-party without authorization. Rights of publicity (sometimes called "personality rights") give individuals the right to control their name, image, likeness, or other identifying aspects of identity. Examples include, but are not limited to, using a music artist's or athlete's name or image on a shirt, or suggesting a product is sponsored or promoted by a famous athlete, without authorization from that person to do so.

Brand Authorization

Brand Authorization is a way for sellers to submit legitimate documentation from brand owners through Seller Center. These documents act as evidence that these sellers are authorized to sell a brand's products or utilize another party's intellectual property.
For certain products, brands, and categories, we require sellers to obtain approval before listing products. The approval process may include document requests and other qualifications.
Sellers may be required to submit Brand Authorization to TikTok Shop before listing specific products. TikTok Shop reserves the right to request Brand Authorization documentation from sellers at any time. Additionally, TikTok Shop may reject any seller's Brand Authorization documents if the document appears insufficient based on our criteria or falsified.
To obtain Brand Authorization, sellers need to submit specific documentation in Seller Center. The chart below specifies what documentation is needed to obtain Brand Authorization on TikTok Shop, depending on the seller type.

Reporting Infringement

Only IPR owners or their authorized licensees may file an IPR infringement notice. Before submitting an IPR infringement notice, keep in mind that intentionally submitting a misleading or fraudulent notice may lead to liability for damages or other penalties under local laws. If you are not sure if you are the proper IP owner or if IP laws protect the material, you should obtain legal counsel.

Note: We may provide the account holder you identify in your IPR infringement notice with your contact information, including the e-mail address and the name of the IPR owner, and/or other details of the notice, in accordance with our Seller Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

When submitting an IPR infringement notice to us, the rights owner or their authorized representative must follow the processes specified below.

Submitting an Infringement Notice via TikTok Shop's Intellectual Property Protection Center

• IPR owners or their authorized licensees may use the TikTok Shop Intellectual Property Protection Center (or IPPC) to submit an IPR infringement notice. If you are unsure whether third-party intellectual property rights are being violated, we encourage you to seek independent legal advice before submitting a notice.
• The IPPC is an integrated platform that allows rights owners to protect their IPR across products sold on our platform. Rights owners can submit their IPR details, detect infringing products, file infringement notices, and track the progress of their notices on the IPPC.
• Rights holders must provide complete information when requested on the IPPC. Incomplete information may limit our ability to investigate and could result in the denial of the notice.
• During investigations, additional information may be requested to properly address the notice of IPR infringement.

Submitting an Infringement Notice through TikTok Shop's Intellectual Property Rights Web Form

• If you are unsure whether third-party intellectual property rights are being violated, we encourage you to seek independent legal advice before submitting a notice.
• All notices must include the information requested in our TikTok Shop Intellectual Property Rights Report form. Failure to provide necessary details may limit our ability to investigate your claims and result in your complaint being denied.
• During our investigations, we may request additional information to address the notice of IPR infringement.

Types of IPR Infringement Notices That May Not Be Accepted by TikTok Shop

The types of notices that are not accepted by TikTok Shop include, but are not limited to:

Distribution Agreements

TikTok Shop respects the rights of brand owners, manufacturers, trading companies, and distributors to enter into agreements concerning how their products should be distributed, such as exclusive distribution agreements. However, violations of such agreements are generally unlikely to constitute an IPR infringement. The enforcement of distribution agreements is typically a matter between the parties involved, and TikTok Shop does not generally assist with this type of enforcement activity unless the actions complained of constitute an infringement of IPR.

Sale Price Control

TikTok Shop will not process notices based solely on products listed for sale below a specific price point, such as Minimal Advertised Price (MAP) or Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price (MSRP).

Jurisdiction

TikTok Shop does not take action regarding IPR infringement notices concerning trademarks, patents, or designs from countries other than where the takedown is requested. If you are filing a notice for the infringement of a trademark, patent, or design, it must be protected in the country where you are filing the notice. For example, if you own a trademark registered only in Indonesia and file a notice to remove a listing in the United States, your notice will be unsuccessful.

Enforcement Actions

Sellers or creators who are deemed to have violated any TikTok Shop policy may have enforcement actions taken against them in accordance with our TikTok Shop Seller Enforcement Policy, Creator Performance Evaluation Policy, and our TikTok Terms. Sellers and creators should be aware that repeated violations may lead to stricter enforcement actions, including potential account deactivation.

Appeals

Methods of Appeal

If a user receives an IPR infringement notification that they believe is in error or believes they are authorized to use the product and/or content, they can submit an appeal to TikTok Shop.

Submitting Appeals to TikTok Shop

Users may file an appeal through the Seller Center by raising a ticket. We will then investigate the case and take corrective actions where applicable.
To appeal IPR violations and enforcement actions, please visit your TikTok Shop Seller Center and visit the "Shop Health" tab to review any violation records and the documents required to appeal. Depending on the violation, you may be asked to provide documents supporting your appeal which could include (but are not limited to) an IPR certificate, a letter of authorization from the IPR owner, or a proof of purchase.
More information for appeals can be found in our Seller Appeals for IPR violations article.

TikTok Shop Appeals Guidelines

• Sellers can raise a maximum of two appeals per case. The first appeal must be submitted within 30 calendar days of the enforcement action, and the second appeal within 15 calendar days of the first appeal’s rejection.
• Creators can raise a maximum of one appeal against one case. Creators must raise this appeal within 30 calendar days of enforcement action taken by us.
• If a seller's or creator's appeal is successful, we will remove any penalties issued and restore any withdrawn privileges.
• If a seller or creator decides to waive their right to appeal or is unable to provide any valid and clear documents to prove authenticity, then the appeal will not be successful.
• All appeal decisions will be made by TikTok in its sole discretion.