In August, the Chinese-based owner of TikTok, ByteDance, was given a choice: Sell to a U.S. company by Sep 15 or end all U.S. operations.
President Donald Trump has set to ban the app over concerns that China could be using it to gain sensitive information from its users. TikTok has, however, clarified that their U.S. user data is stored domestically.
“TikTok US user data is stored in the US, with strict controls on employee access,” said a statement from TikTok. “TikTok’s biggest investors come from the US. We are committed to protecting our users’ privacy and safety as we continue working to bring joy to families and meaningful careers to those who create on our platform.”
Nevertheless, Trump has continued his insistence that the app be banned.
“As far as TikTok is concerned, we’re banning them from the United States,” President Trump said to reporters aboard Air Force One.
Trump has also stated that any deal would have to include a “substantial amount of money” being put towards the U.S. Treasury. A demand of this kind has no basis in U.S. law.
“It’s actually quite hard to understand what the president is actually talking about here…” said Gene Kimmelman, a former chief counsel for the US Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “It’s not unheard of for transactions to have broader geopolitical implications between countries, but it’s quite remarkable to think about some kind of money being on the table in connection with a transaction.”
ByteDance has released a plan for TikTok that involves merging with U.S. companies Oracle and Walmart. Under this deal U.S. operations would be run by a new company, TikTok Global. User data and service would be kept on Oracle’s cloud computing system. Trump offered support for this deal under the condition that ByteDance would not hold any stake in the company. Trump told Fox News that “if we find that they don’t have total control, then we’re not going to approve the deal.”
“As a part of this agreement, TikTok will run on the Oracle Cloud and Oracle will become a minority investor in TikTok Global,” said Oracle CEO Safra Catz. “Oracle will quickly deploy, rapidly scale, and operate TikTok systems in the Oracle Cloud. We are a hundred percent confident in our ability to deliver a highly secure environment to TikTok and ensure data privacy to TikTok’s American users, and users throughout the world. This greatly improved security and guaranteed privacy will enable the continued rapid growth of the TikTok user community to benefit all stakeholders.”
TikTok is home to over 100 million active American users, many of which rely on TikTok’s Creator Fund for their financial security, and many others who view the app as an outlet. From dancing, to politics, to artwork, the user base on the service is vast and diverse. The removal of TikTok is an intimidating thought to those who use the app to express their views and communicate with people outside of their social circle,
“I feel like there is a wonderful community on TikTok…” said sophomore Eden Priddle. “I would hate for something with that much of a positive impact to be taken away.”
Others view the banning of TikTok as a dangerous step away from free expression.
“I feel like banning any media that isn’t a direct threat to our integrity and security as a nation is a direct violation of the first amendment,” said junior Aiden Vigus. “It’s a slippery slope to facism.”
“I feel like the fact that we’re in this position in the first place shows what kind of leader he is to begin with,” said senior Caroline Scholer.
It’s still up in the air as to how this deal will go. ByteDance has insisted on keeping a large stake in TikTok Global, while Oracle has gone on record to say that the Chinese company “will have no ownership”. Only time can tell what the fate of TikTok will be.
Artwork By Ethan Westmoreland
