Pakistan blocks TikTok again over 'inappropriate content'

Islamabad - The app has a huge fan base in Pakistan, where many people use it to market and sell goods online.

The popular TikTok video-sharing app was blocked Wednesday in Pakistan for a fourth time because of "inappropriate content", the country's telecommunication regulator said.

The site has fought a series of legal battles with activists and authorities in the nation, and was shut down for two days earlier this month on the order of a provincial court.

Freedom of speech advocates have long criticised creeping government censorship and control of Pakistan's internet and media.

"The action has been taken due to continuous presence of inappropriate content on the platform and its failure to take such content down," the telecoms authority said in a statement.

A local TikTok representative did not immediately comment.

The app has a huge fan base in Pakistan, where many people use it to market and sell goods online.

But its critics say it promotes vulgarity and "inappropriate content".

In June, TikTok said it had removed more than six million videos available to Pakistan users in just three months following complaints from officials and ordinary users.

Officials have previously asked YouTube to block content they deem objectionable, and several dating apps are prohibited.

• Pakistan