The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority has formally registered the live-streaming platform BIGO LIVE and the short-video app Likee in Pakistan, bringing two widely used social apps fully within the country’s regulatory framework for online content. The registration was announced by the regulator on Wednesday and covers both platforms under their local operating company, Bigo Service Pakistan (Private) Limited.
BIGO LIVE is built around live video, with hosts broadcasting in real time to audiences who can watch, comment and interact as the stream unfolds. Likee, by contrast, is centred on short recorded videos, a format that has become one of the most popular ways for people to create and share content on their phones. Although the two apps serve different purposes, they sit under the same local company, and the regulator’s announcement treats them together as part of a single registration.
The registration was completed under the Removal and Blocking of Unlawful Online Content (Procedure, Oversight and Safeguards) Rules, 2021. Those rules require significant social media companies operating in Pakistan to register with the authority, and they form the legal backbone of the regulator’s dealings with large online platforms. In its announcement, the authority said it looked forward to working more closely with BIGO to improve content moderation, encourage responsible use of the platforms, and make sure they continue to comply with Pakistani law. It described the registration as an important step in its engagement with major social media platforms and in building a safe and secure online space for users in the country.
Registered under the online content rules
The 2021 rules were framed under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016, and notified by the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication in October 2021. They set out a clear set of obligations for significant social media companies. A company covered by the rules must register with the authority, appoint an authorised compliance officer based in Pakistan, and appoint a dedicated grievance officer in the country to deal with complaints about online content. Those officers are expected to address complaints within seven working days, giving users in Pakistan a local point of contact when something goes wrong.
The rules also give the regulator real enforcement powers. Where content is found to be unlawful under Pakistani law, the authority can direct a platform to remove it or block access to it, normally within 48 hours of receiving the direction, or within 12 hours in an emergency. A company that fails to comply can face a penalty of up to Rs500 million. For BIGO, registration therefore creates a formal, documented relationship with the regulator, with named local officers, defined response times and a clear route for complaints to be raised and resolved.
Not the first registration
This is not the first time BIGO has gone through the process. Bigo Service Pakistan was among the first companies to register with the authority under the same rules. In January 2022, it received registration certificates for BIGO LIVE and Likee, alongside Snack Video, another short-video app in the same stable.
The latest announcement confirms and renews that formal standing under the local company. It comes at a time when the regulator has been pressing platforms more firmly on moderation and compliance. Other large platforms are already under similar pressure, and the scale of that effort is visible in the figures: TikTok, for example, has removed more than 23 million videos from Pakistan for breaking its own rules.
What the registration means for users
For ordinary users, the most immediate effect of registration is a clearer route for complaints. Where a user comes across content that breaks local law, or finds their own content or account affected by a moderation decision, there is now a formal channel through the regulator for raising the matter and for having unlawful content removed. The presence of a local grievance officer means complaints do not have to disappear into an overseas support queue; there is a named responsibility within Pakistan for dealing with them.
Registration may also show up in how the platforms moderate content. With a closer working relationship with the regulator, the apps are expected to act more promptly on unlawful material and to promote responsible use among their creators and audiences.
It is worth being clear about what registration does not change. It does not mean the regulator endorses everything posted on either platform, and it does not turn the apps into state-controlled services. The platforms continue to operate as commercial products, with their own community guidelines sitting alongside Pakistani law. What changes is accountability: when unlawful content appears, there is a registered company, a local presence and a defined process for dealing with it. Pakistan has, at various points, turned to outright bans when its disputes with platforms escalated, an approach that disrupted millions of users and creators overnight. Registration offers a different path, one built on standing arrangements, local officers and agreed procedures, which keeps services running while giving the regulator a lever it can actually use. For users of BIGO LIVE and Likee, the formal registration is a concrete step towards a more accountable online space.
