TikTok has been the talk of the town lately. It has around 100 million users in the US alone. Unfortunately, this video content creation app is facing major scrutiny and a possible TikTok ban, after diplomatic relations between the Trump administration and the Chinese government go sour.
ByteDance, a corporation based in China, owns TikTok, which has been a major point of contention for the White House. Federal authorities have raised concerns over security and the private data of millions of Americans. In view of the current situation, President Trump has expressed a TikTok ban unless an American company buys it.
Given the popularity of TikTok, several top companies laid their stakes. Some of them include Walmart, Microsoft, and Oracle. On 13th September, Microsoft revealed that ByteDance rejected their bid. Now, it appears that Oracle will win the bid, with Walmart playing a small part.
As per news sources, Oracle’s proposal is still to be approved by the Trump administration.
Latest News On TikTok Ban
Even though things seem settled between Oracle and ByteDance, the US Department of Treasury is still reviewing if they should give TikTok a green light.
According to sources, ByteDance will still hold a major share in TikTok. An American base will be set up as Oracle reviews Tiktok’s security protocol with regards to American data. It has also been reported the company’s stocks will be offered in the US stocks exchange after a year.
After reporters questioned Trump on the potential new deal, he said that he wouldn’t like a deal that gave ByteDance major control over the video content app.
On Friday, federal authorities announced that the TikTok ban will begin from Sunday. Additionally, any attempt to transfer or hold virtual traffic related to TikTok will be deemed illegal from 12th November.
What Are The Trump Administration’s Security Concerns?
Early in August, it was announced that if TikTok is not owned by an American company by 20th September, the Trump administration would initiate a TikTok ban.
The White House beloved that this video content creation app is the Chinese government’s spying tool. They also believe TikTok could be used to collect and leverage American user’s data.
However, TikTok denied and refuted all these security allegations. They claimed that none of their data Centers are within China, and so, are not subject to its law.
The new Oracle deal comes just days before the TikTok ban could come into effect. Many are speculating a positive outcome for Oracle since Lary Ellison, the company’s cofounder has close ties with Trump.
The Trump administration’s insistent involvement in the entire TikTok fiasco has surprised many as the government usually does not influence a deal so close to the chest.
