The White House has announced that under a new agreement, U.S. companies will oversee TikTok’s algorithm, and American representatives will occupy six of the seven board seats for the app’s U.S. operations. This development comes amid ongoing concerns regarding national security, prompting the U.S. to separate TikTok’s U.S. operations from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt indicated that a formal deal could be signed soon, although there has been no response from Beijing regarding the negotiations. The U.S. government had previously mandated TikTok to either sell its U.S. operations or face a possible ban. Former President Trump had delayed the implementation of this ban multiple times and recently extended the deadline to December.
Leavitt noted that tech company Oracle, owned by Larry Ellison, will lead data privacy initiatives for TikTok in the U.S. She emphasized that the algorithm would also be managed by American entities, with significant details of the arrangement already agreed upon. Ellison’s family has gained notable prominence through their recent acquisition of Paramount, which is associated with CBS News.
During a phone call, Trump claimed that both he and Chinese President Xi Jinping had approved the deal concerning TikTok’s U.S. operations. However, Beijing’s state media reported Xi’s comments as welcoming negotiations but did not confirm any specific agreement. A key point of contention in these negotiations has been the control of TikTok’s influential algorithm, which impacts content delivery to its 170 million American users.
Currently, questions remain about whether an American buyer would need to develop a new algorithm or if they would retain the existing one. Despite initially advocating for a ban on TikTok, Trump has shifted his stance, utilizing the platform for outreach during his 2024 presidential campaign. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld a law in early 2024 that restricts the app’s operations unless ByteDance divests its stakes in the U.S. Nonetheless, the app was temporarily shut down before service resumed following a delay of the ban. The U.S. Department of Justice has expressed concerns regarding TikTok’s access to user data, viewing it as a potential national security risk.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c89dd747yz7o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss