Malaysia Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has granted licences to China-based Tencent's WeChat and ByteDance's TikTok to operate under a new social media law. This law, which became effective on 1 January 2025,

Elon Musk’s X and Alphabet’s Google, which runs YouTube, have not yet applied for a social media licence under Malaysia’s new law, which took effect on Wednesday, Jan 1, according to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), the country’s internet regulator.

From Jan. 1, social media platforms with more than 8 million users in Malaysia need to have a license to operate or risk getting blocked.

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) have announced that Tencent (WeChat) and ByteDance (TikTok) are the first platforms to successfully obtain the required Applications Service Provider Class (ASP(C)) licence under the new social media regulation.

Four major internet messaging and social media service providers have taken significant steps towards regulatory compliance by applying for licences to

In a statement today, MCMC said WeChat was the first to be granted the Class Licence for Application Service Providers (CASP), followed by TikTok. MCMC said Telegram and Meta – which oversees Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp – have initiated the process of obtaining the licence, which is expected to be completed soon.

MCMC praised Telegram and WeChat for their commitment to comply with the social media licensing requirements. It urged others to apply to avoid further action.

The two Chinese technology companies had each obtained licenses under requirements for internet- messaging and social-media companies unveiled last year.

Malaysia's communications regulator said it granted Tencent's WeChat and ByteDance's TikTok licences to operate in the country under a new social media law, but that some other platforms had not applied.

Malaysia has officially licensed Tencent’s WeChat and ByteDance’s TikTok to operate under a new social media regulation designed to address rising cybercrime. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) announced that while some platforms have complied,

WeChat and ByteDance's (BDNCE) TikTok have received licenses under a new social media law in Malaysia to operate in the country, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission said in a social media post.