Chinese tech giant ByteDance reportedly wants to shut down TikTok in the US if a legal battle against recently passed ban or divestment legislation fails.
TikTok’s China-based parent company ByteDance would prefer to shut down the app in the U.S. rather than sell it if the Chinese company cannot defeat the ban in court, four people familiar with the matter said. I made it. Said Reuters.
Nebraska NCAA collegiate pole vaulter Jessica Gardner looks at her phone, Thursday, March 9, 2023, in Lincoln, Nebraska (AP Photo/Rebecca S. Gratz)
TikTok influencers Florin Vitan (left) and Alessia Lanza present videos from the social network TikTok at the TikTok influencer incubator “Deaf House”. (Photo by MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP via Getty Images)
ByteDance does not want to sell TikTok, according to people familiar with the matter. This is because if the sale were to go ahead, a foreign company would gain access to the app’s algorithms, which are at the core of the Chinese company’s entire business.
Additionally, TikTok makes up a small percentage of ByteDance’s total revenue and daily active user count, and if the Chinese tech giant doesn’t find a way around the recently passed US bill, the All the more reason to allow it to close. , added the source.
ByteDance believes that if TikTok were to be shut down in the U.S., the impact on its business would be minimal while allowing it to keep its core algorithms in-house.
ByteDance-owned media platform Toutiao said in a statement Thursday that the Chinese tech giant has no plans to sell TikTok.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said Wednesday that the social media platform plans to file a lawsuit against the sales ban signed by President Joe Biden.
The Chinese company, controlled by a hostile foreign country, ironically told Americans it would “fight” for their “rights”, adding, “The Constitution is on our side.”
The bipartisan bill, signed into law Wednesday, would force ByteDance to sell TikTok within nine months or have it banned in the U.S., alleging that the popular app’s parent company is beholden to the Chinese Communist Party. The proposal comes after years of concern from U.S. lawmakers and private citizens about the current situation.
TikTok is widely considered to be a national security threat, given that large amounts of US user data could and probably will end up in the hands of Chinese communists. . Notably, lawmakers have already banned the app from government-issued devices.
Meanwhile, TikTok has also proven dangerous to children and teens, facing multiple lawsuits filed by several families who claim the Chinese social media platform is directly responsible for their children’s deaths. are doing.
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