TikTok has been a hot topic, and not just because of a trend or a viral video. The social network has become a complex issue, tying together technology, national security, and global economic and corporate interests. In a press conference, Karoline Leavitt revealed more details about the agreement between the United States and China regarding control of the popular social media platform. Under the agreement, US investors, such as Oracle, Silver Lake Partners, and media moguls Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch, would collectively own 80% of TikTok’s US operations, while ByteDance would retain a minority stake of 20% or less.
The algorithm is responsible for showing us what we “want” to see based on the clicks we make
One of the most important points, aside from commercial or economic interests, is the algorithm. This is a very important issue on any social network because, as we’ve learned, the algorithm is responsible for showing us what we “want” to see based on the clicks we make, the information we search for, the accounts we follow, the location we are in… Therefore, a crucial aspect of the agreement involves Oracle’s responsibility to oversee and protect TikTok’s algorithm.
Karoline Leavitt: “This deal puts the United States first”
Oracle is the software and cloud computing company co-founded by Larry Ellison, a company with a long history in business. Regarding this move, Karoline Leavitt stated that the United States would retain control of the app’s algorithm, which controls, as mentioned above, what users consume within the app. “This deal puts the United States first,” Leavitt stated on Fox News’ “Saturday in America.”
US government will also receive a multi-million dollar commission as part of the deal
Regarding the people who will serve on the board, Donald Trump told the media that they were “all very well-known people, very famous people actually, financially.” It’s worth noting that the US government will also receive a multi-million dollar commission as part of the deal. Leavitt, for his part, also wanted to emphasize that “This deal means that TikTok will be majority-owned by Americans in the United States. There will be seven seats on the board that controls the app in the United States, and six of them will be Americans.”
ByteDance is also expected to lease the algorithm to the new US entity
On the other hand, and despite Trump’s indication that Chinese President Xi Jinping has accepted the deal, sources say that Beijing has yet to officially confirm its approval. What we do know for sure is that Trump’s order will allow the aforementioned American-led group of investors to purchase the app from China’s ByteDance, although the deal is not yet finalized and requires Chinese approval. In any case, ByteDance is also expected to lease the algorithm to the new US entity, raising several questions about the extent of control the company will retain. And let’s remember that the issue of access to user data was what most concerned Donald Trump less than a year ago.
Trump: “We got a lot of Republican votes from very young people”
The Trump administration wanted to make a statement and temporarily shut down TikTok, until they realized the enormous backlash this generated among young Americans, many of them Republican voters, as the president himself recently said. “I think we won by such a large margin that it wouldn’t have mattered (whether TikTok had been there or not). But we got a lot of votes. We got a lot of Republican votes from very young people.” So you could say there was some social pressure, combined with commercial and economic interests, that drove the agreement that is currently underway, although we insist, without official approval from Beijing.
