#ByteDance last dance in USA
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Congress passes new bill that could lead to total US TikTok ban now
The House of Representatives passed a bill aimed at shutting down TikTok, citing concerns over Chinese influence and data privacy. The legislation, part of a broader foreign aid package, extends ByteDance’s divestment period. Critics fear the app could be used for political manipulation, echoing warnings from intelligence officials. TikTok denies sharing data with China, emphasizing its…
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Next Steps In The TikTok Diplomatic Dance
Next Steps In The TikTok Diplomatic Dance
USA-TIKTOK-BYTEDANCE-TRUMP:Explainer: Next steps in the TikTok diplomatic dance
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he does not plan to extend a deadline for ByteDance to sell TikTok’s U.S. business, with the process still mired in uncertainty.
Reuters
Last Updated: September 11, 2020, 9:09 PM IST
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Explainer: Next Steps In The TikTok Diplomatic Dance
Explainer: Next Steps In The TikTok Diplomatic Dance
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USA-TIKTOK-BYTEDANCE-TRUMP:Explainer: Next steps in the TikTok diplomatic dance
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he does not plan to extend a deadline for ByteDance to sell TikTok’s U.S. business, with the process still mired in uncertainty.
Reuters
Last Updated: September 11, 2020, 9:09 PM IST
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Is TikTok Getting Banned?
By Sophie Psilakis, Fordham University, Class of 2020
July 15, 2020
Following a Fox News interview with Laura Ingraham on Monday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo mentioned that the Trump Administration is considering a ban on the Chinese social media app TikTok. [1] The app in question is a video-sharing social networking platform used primary by Gen Z and Millennials to create short dance, lip-sync, comedy, and talent videos. With 800 million active users worldwide, from celebrities, to influencers, to anyone with a smartphone, TikTok has quickly become one of the most popular platforms for young users, especially in quarantine. Despite its mass appeal, the app is coming under increasing scrutiny from powerful governments, which could indicate trouble for the app’s future.
Last week, India banned TikTok, along with 58 other Chinese apps. According to the BBC, India was Tiktok’s largest market, so this was quite the blow for the app. [2] After Pompeo hinted the United States’ consideration into a ban of their own, President Trump confirmed as much the following day, saying, “It’s something we’re looking at, yes. It’s a big business. Look, what happened with China with this virus, what they’ve done to this country and to the entire world is disgraceful.” [3]
As the previous quote suggests, one possible reason the Trump Administration is interested in banning TikTok could be as a way to retaliate against China over its handling of COVID-19. Although Trump did not offer any specifics in his interview about a potential decision, he is looking to reciprocate the damages done by the Beijing government over the coronavirus.
Another reason for wanting to ban TikTok in the U.S. is because of privacy concerns. Officially, India said it banned the app in order to protect security. Specifically, it said the app was a “threat to [India’s] sovereignty and integrity.” [4] Mike Pompeo suggested similar concerns; when asked if he would recommend downloading the app, he said “Only if you want your private information in the hands of the Chinese Communist Party” [5]
Now, the most intense app bans happen at the network level, blocking any communication between the targeted servers and users in the country. This is how India implemented its own ban of TikTok. American law doesn’t have any precedent for blocking software in this way, so it seems unlikely that the White House could successfully follow through with censorship in this manner. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) , which oversees mergers and investments involving non-US companies, opened a national security investigation into TikTok last year. CCFIUS citied similar concerns to Pompeo, and there’s enough evidence against the company to build a plausible case.
TikTok is a subsidiary of the Beijing-based company ByteDance, and critics have raised several issues around both its overall privacy practices and its potential ties to the Chinese government. It’s currently unclear if these concerns are valid, but it is possible that the U.S. and Indian governments could have relevant evidence that has not yet been made public. On the other hand, a TikTok spokesperson has gone on record stating, “TikTok is led by an American CEO, with hundreds of employees and key leaders across safety, security, product, and public policy here in the U.S. We have never provided user data to the Chinese government, nor would we do so if asked.” [6]
In order to truly take the app off of the phones of Americans, the government would need to make Apple and Google sever their ties with ByteDance. TikTok’s appeal would vastly reduce if it was removed from the iOS App Store and Google Play Store. Essentially, the government would be ordering companies to de-platform TikTok, which can be extremely powerful. To do this, the Trump Administration could have the Commerce Department put TikTok on the “entity list” that limits its commercial ties to US companies. Congressional approval isn’t required to do this, and it can simply cite any US Company that does business with them for violating sanctions. If TikTok were successfully added to the list, Apple and Google would have a hard time keeping them in the App Store. [7]
According to James Lewis, Director of Technology Policy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, putting TikTok on the list would be extreme, unusual, and legally dubious. He explains, “They could sanction them, but usually the sanction is tied to trade violations or espionage or proliferation or intellectual property theft. You can’t just do it because you’re mad at a company.” [8] The claims against TikTok currently are merely suspicions, not legal complaints.
Often, Trump isn’t necessarily concerned with whether or not his orders are lawful. [9] If he were to issue an executive order in attempt to “ban” TikTok or other Chinese apps, it most likely will get challenged immediately in court. None of the options listed would constitute a literal banning of the app; that is, explicitly cutting US users off from TikTok’s network. Pompeo’s discussion of the ban obscures the real limits of US government power.
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Sophie Psilakis is a recent graduate from Fordham University, in NY, NY, with a degree in economics and French. She has a background in political advocacy and non-profit work, and is pursuing a career in law.
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[1] Singh, K., & Kalia, S. (2020, July 06). Pompeo says U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok. Retrieved July 9, 2020, from https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-tiktok-china-pompeo-idUSKBN2480DF
[2] Clayton, J. (2020, July 07). TikTok: Chinese app may be banned in US, says Pompeo. Retrieved July 9, 2020, from https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-53319955
[3] Banjo, S., Fabian, J., & Bloomberg. (2020, July 07). Trump says he's considering banning TikTok. Retrieved July 9, 2020, from https://fortune.com/2020/07/07/trump-considering-banning-tiktok/
[4] Grothaus, M. (2020, July 08). Why is TikTok getting banned? Here's the latest update as the U.S. mulls app shutdown. Retrieved July 9, 2020, from https://www.fastcompany.com/90525530/why-is-tiktok-getting-banned-heres-the-latest-update-as-the-u-s-mulls-app-shutdown
[5] Kelly, M. (2020, July 07). The US government is considering a TikTok ban, says secretary of state. Retrieved July 9, 2020, from https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/7/21316062/tiktok-ban-app-mike-pompeo-government-china-bytedance-communist-party
[6] Grothaus, M. (2020, July 08). Why is TikTok getting banned? Here's the latest update as the U.S. mulls app shutdown. Retrieved July 9, 2020, from https://www.fastcompany.com/90525530/why-is-tiktok-getting-banned-heres-the-latest-update-as-the-u-s-mulls-app-shutdown
[7] Robertson, A. (2020, July 09). How the Trump administration could 'ban' TikTok. Retrieved July 9, 2020, from https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/9/21315983/trump-pompeo-ban-tiktok-bytedance-chinese-social-media-national-security-censorship-methods
[8] Ibid.
[9] Kelly, M. (2020, May 28). Donald Trump's executive order is 'plainly illegal,' says co-author of Section 230. Retrieved July 9, 2020, from https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/28/21273495/donald-trump-section-230-ron-wyden-author-bill-twitter-facebook-law-speech
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TikTok, Huawei, ZTE: The Politic’s Technology Arms of Chinese Communist
Ongoing developments have exposed a new strain of political ball game: technology. In a sign of building tensions between the two major powerhouses in this regard, the US ambassador to China, Terry Branstad, announced today he is stepping down from his position. Although there are many potential causes for this, the US pressure in the realm of technology and national security is likely a strong contributor, with sanctions on the supply of microchips paralysing their western expansion and, in the eyes of China, granting unfair competition to US 5G companies.
There are points to both sides: the capitalist system thrives on competitive businesses coming out on top and therefore providing superior quality and pricing, but also allows more totalitarian states the ability to utilise this economic freedom to expand spheres of intelligence. The White House has now clearly decided that the latter point is deserving of more importance, and we, therefore, begin a new age of technological conflict in the political sphere. The problem of economic openness was laid bare in a rejected editorial to a Chinese state newspaper by Mr. Branstad, claiming the US was being “exploited”.
As an “old friend of China”, who boasts a 35-year history with Xi Jinping, it is unusual that such a figure like Branstad would crash out of the role with a scent of animosity. But the growth of Chinese influence was inevitable, as you can only expect the world’s second-largest economy to want a share of global influence when the current hegemon is the home of technology leaders such as Google, Microsoft, and Apple. It is not just technology that the US has an undisputed dominance over, but also military prowess, banking, intelligence, and diplomacy. China is therefore looking for its deserved world influence. However, unlike the Cold War, which saw two polar systems of economic ideology, one of external as well as internal totalitarianism, we now have a China that is looking to participate in global markets and utilise the globalised system that has emerged dominant following the collapse of communism in the USSR but while also controlling its businesses a little too closely for some.
Just as the period of relative hegemonic peace during ‘Pax Britannica’ ended with the onset of WWI, we stare at an uneasy geopolitical climate with the withering of Pax America. Although these games are no doubt taking place across many spheres, such as diplomacy and finance, the inclusion of technology allows for a very public display of these confrontations and is like a strong indication of the severity of them in other areas.
The conflict in technology has spilled out into multiple western countries, with the UK and Australia banning Huawei from its future 5G infrastructure under US pressure, and now UK technology company Arm is caught up in the crossfire of this geopolitical turmoil. Arm China, the businesses Chinese operation and 51% owned by Beijing backed investors, asked for Chinese government protection when the parent company, who owns the remaining 49%, tried to remove the head of the Chinese unit, Allen Wu. The major complications come in two parts, Arm China’s main client is Huawei, and Arm, which was owned by Softbank in Japan, has been sold to the American technology company Nvidia. To add insult to this move, the Founder and CEO of Nvidia is Taiwanese-American, born on the island that China claims, and the US supports militarily.
The fallout from this will likely be the catapulting of Nvidia and Arm into the political battle, and further US pressure on the UK due to Nvidia’s promise to maintain Arm’s headquarters in the UK, making it subject to UK export control laws, and the restriction of technology to Arm China in an attempt to stymie Huawei’s 5G prowess. RISC-V, an opensource chip design platform backed by Chinese businesses Huawei and Alibaba, will likely be a beneficiary of intra-China business divestment from Arm China as a result.
Whereas Huawei was opposed due to its potential influence on 5G infrastructure, TikTok, which experienced more quarterly downloads than any other app in history according to analytics company Sensor Tower, is a social media platform. The parent company, ByteDance, has been forced to sell its US operations or be shut down by the government on national security grounds. Therefore, another US company now finds itself in a similar position to Nvidia, Oracle, who has won the bid for control over TikTok USA following a failed bid by Microsoft. It is becoming clear that the US response to Chinese ‘exploitation’ of its free market system is the utilisation of its multinational corporations to purchase or take controlling stakes in companies of national interest.
Given the hegemonic power of the US in these areas, and the funding capabilities of its financial institutions, it makes for a strong defense if ever there was a need for one. Just as the US government has ordered the takeover of the Chinese operations of TikTok and Huawei, China may retaliate with a similar annexation of Arm China. This is yet to be seen.
Two things are certain in this new realm of politics, it is certainly not limited to technology, especially as China may be looking for more ways to test the US’ global position, and it is not over yet. Although China possesses an economy nearing that of the US, it is just beginning to dance among the periphery of the US across the board.
There are going to be many more conflicts as China grows even stronger in the field of technology, diplomacy, finance, and, we all fear, military development. We need to then seriously contend with how to deal with China going forward, by remembering that it is not in China’s own interests to lead to escalation and military incursions, but also respect that they will inevitably need a place in the future dual-hegemony of the world order.
The post TikTok, Huawei, ZTE: The Politic’s Technology Arms of Chinese Communist appeared first on The Lastes US & World News - Opinion, Entertainments, Sports,....
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Disney’s streaming chief Kevin Mayer leaves to become TikTok CEO
(Reuters) — Walt Disney’s top streaming executive, Kevin Mayer, will leave the entertainment and theme parks giant to become the chief executive officer of TikTok, the popular video app owned by China’s ByteDance, the companies said on Monday. Mayer led the successful launch of the Disney+ streaming service in November but in February was passed over as Disney’s new chief executive. Mayer’s appointment will be effective June 1, when he will also become chief operating officer of ByteDance, the Chinese company said.
TikTok, which allows users to create short videos with special effects, has become wildly popular with U.S. teenagers doing viral challenges that pair dances with music clips from the app’s library. TikTok has hinted at ambitions to build a music streaming business, announcing in January that it was partnering with U.K.-based music rights agency Merlin to expand its musical selections. ByteDance’s Chinese ownership, however, has sparked concerns in Washington about TikTok’s handling of personal data. The company uses sophisticated artificial intelligence to make video recommendations based on users’ behavior on the app.
In November, the U.S. government launched a national security review of ByteDance’s $1 billion acquisition of social media app Musical.ly, which became TikTok. Two senators introduced a bill to ban federal employees from using TikTok on government-issued phones. One of those senators, Republican Josh Hawley, said TikTok previously told him its executives could not testify before Congress because they were located in China. “But this new executive lives in the USA,” Hawley wrote on Twitter on Monday. “I look forward to hearing from him. Under oath.”
To appease concerns, ByteDance has stepped up efforts to separate TikTok from much of its Chinese businesses and has made several high-profile executive hires in recent months. It appointed former Microsoft intellectual property chief Erich Andersen as global general counsel in January, after hiring Vanessa Pappas, a veteran YouTube executive, to run its U.S. operations last year.
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Speculation over Mayer’s future began swirling in February after Disney named Robert Chapek as chief executive officer. Mayer, who has a “loud and forceful” style, according to a former Disney executive, was seen as a dealmaker who had only recently been put in charge of a large profit-and-loss division. His relative lack of operating experience was a main reason he did not get the top job, the former executive said. A ByteDance spokesman said the company had “no reservations” about Mayer’s operational experience. “Any company in our sector would be delighted have him onboard.”
Under Mayer’s leadership, Disney+ collected more than 50 million subscribers in five months. Disney named Rebecca Campbell, a 23-year company veteran, to replace Mayer as head of the direct-to-consumer and international division, which includes the streaming media units Disney is counting on to drive future growth.
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