TikTok Video Downloader for iOS
TikTok Video Downloader was built for iOS to download all TikTok posts off of someones profile in order to be backed up. The need for an app arose when there was talk about banning TikTok in the US.
Sometimes apps can gain temporary success purely because they fulfill a need only for a brief period of time. When I had heard that the US government was considering banning TikTok, I thought that I could create an app that would help the millions of TikTok users, while also providing a some money to fund my next project.
I first needed to figure out how to acquire an access token in order to make requests similarly to how the app and website make requests to get video content. The goal once I created an access token successfully was to mimic the “Share -> Save Video” feature within the app.
Through trial and error, the only method that I was able to successfully generate an access token was by creating a hidden web view behind the app. The web view will be making the desired requests in the background as users clicked buttons on the TikTok Video Downloader app.
Once I had created a method for downloading videos from a particular TikTok profile, I thought about how I could make money off of the app. I implemented a coin system where each download would cost 10 coins and the user could either earn coins by watching videos, or buying a premium version of the app were coins were no longer needed.
After completing the app and submitted for App Store Review, it was rejected for the following reason:
Guideline 5.2.3 – Legal – Intellectual Property
Your app allows users to save or download music, video, or other media content without authorization from the relevant third-party sources.
No matter what I did, I could not budge Apple into letting my app into the App Store, so while I gained a lot of experience through developing TikTok Video Downloader, no user was able to download it. Luckily TikTok is still not banned in the US!!