If I understand correctly, the core value of TikTok lies in its algorithm, which is not mentioned in the article.
+ Viable income for content creators
One of Tiktok's competitive advantages was how it's algorithm was more like a lottery than ever before. You can go from being viral to irrelevant (and vice-versa) very quickly.
The content is more authentic too. A lot of what I see is from accounts that aren’t monetized, maybe 5% of the videos have less than 100 views.
I do use YouTube for music, but the rest of the content is so contrived and annoying. Instagram is too confusing to use, but all of the content feels like watching a commercial or QVC anyway, so I never bothered figuring it out.