TikTok Live Selling Reshapes Retail In The Philippines.

BOCAUE, PHILIPPINES - MAY 24: Alfredo Emor goes on a morning walk outside with his prosthetic leg before going live on TikTok Shop on May 24, 2024 in Bocaue, Bulacan province, Philippines. Alfredo Emor, an elderly amputee who appears on the TikTok account @freddiebella (a combination of his name and his wife's), has made a comfortable living as a TikTok Shop Affiliate, earning commissions for endorsing products on his livestreams. TikTok Shop, the e-commerce platform within the popular short video app, has spurred a booming live selling industry in the Philippines, where businesses are benefiting from TikTok's prized algorithm to sell more and faster, disrupting the market for other established e-commerce platforms in the region. However, a proposed bill in the Philippine Congress, House Bill 10489, introduced amid geopolitical tensions with China and following similar moves by other countries, aims to ban "foreign adversary-controlled" apps, likely targeting TikTok and could threaten the livelihoods of many Filipinos who have built their businesses on the platform. (Footage by Ezra Acayan/Getty Images)