Given that ByteDance, a Chinese company, that owns TikTok, continued worries about potential threats to national security have reportedly caused negotiations between the two parties to be put off.
The government is worried about how TikTok might disclose information on its video recommendation system, as was initially reported by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing unnamed sources. It is also worried about how much trust it will need to place in TikTok to fulfill the conditions of the arrangement.
US, TikTok Agreement
The government has not yet returned to TikTok with additional demands for resolving the issues. And TikTok confirmed that they were waiting to hear from the authorities with any new information on any outstanding matters.
While we are unable to comment on the specifics of those private conversations, a TikTok spokesperson confirmed in a statement that the company is convinced it is on the right track to properly address any valid US national security concerns and has already made substantial progress in doing so.
The transmission of user data from TikTok’s data centers in Virginia and Singapore to Oracle’s servers in the US was governed by lengthy agreements between TikTok and the US government.
According to reports, Oracle would also be in charge of enforcing rules about who within the TikTok staff had access to data belonging to American users. Authorities and politicians in the US have expressed concerns about TikTok’s security.
Republicans are expected to use their newly acquired authority to look into the app’s alleged connections to China after they assume control of the House of Representatives the following year.
Christopher Wray, the FBI director, wrote to Congress last month to express his deep concern about TikTok’s actions in the US. He implied in his statement that the FBI’s remarks would be taken into account in any agreements reached to resolve the matter.
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Authorities’ Fear
Analysts predicted that competitors like Meta, Google’s YouTube, and Snap would profit if TikTok were banned in the US on Wednesday, Dec. 7. A ban on TikTok is possible but not very likely, according to analysts at Bank of America.
They said that if such a prohibition were to become law, it may raise the possibility of a negotiated sale to a US media or internet company, boosting interest in advertising. As a result of that ban, experts came to the conclusion that Snap and Meta would provide the biggest sentimental benefits.
According to Cowen analysts on Wednesday, the two competing platforms for short videos, YouTube Shorts and Meta Reels, would benefit the most if TikTok were banned. In a survey from November, Cowen predicted that 26% of TikTok viewers would go to Instagram Reels, 21% to YouTube Shorts, and 3% to Snap’s Spotlight if TikTok were restricted.
Whether the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) is pausing to determine what further is necessary for a credible settlement so that it can be properly brought to Capitol Hill is the current question, according to Cowen policy analyst Paul Gallant. The US Department of the Treasury’s CFIUS subcommittee is in charge of the talks with TikTok.
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