this post was submitted on 14 Jan 2025
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88
TikTok Denies Report China Is Looking to Sell App to Elon Musk (variety.com)
submitted 22 hours ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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[–] [email protected] 15 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

There is no way TikTok will be sold - China won't allow it, and it's also technically likely nigh on impossible to just sell the "American" portion of it.

TikTok is a multinational success and highly profitable, so ByteDance aren't going to sell it just to keep it going in the US for the benefit of Americans. They of course don't want to shut it down as it's hugely financially successful in the US, but a ban is the lesser evil for the company.

But it's all nonsense anyway - Trump wants to "do a deal" over this; I doubt he'll get anything meaningful from China but he will blowhard about some bullshit to save face and TikTok will continue, even if there is a short ban before his inauguration.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

Legitimately what's stopping them from accepting the ban and just releasing tiktok 2 with another name. Everyone will hear about the endorsed tiktok replacement and flock to their instead of the other weird Chinese app people are moving to in protest. Literally unless America bans China operating in the States their just going to whack a mole this until America stops singling it out.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 7 hours ago* (last edited 7 hours ago) (1 children)

The "ban" is. i wish people would read what the actual bill says.

The bill stipulates that any entity in the control of a foreign adversary with a certain user threshold that collects specific data and uses algorithms to track users would be banned. This is why the red note "protest" is also not going to work. They'll just ban rednote as well. The ban is about more than just tik tok.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 6 hours ago

This is not sustainable at all and is going to lead to a chain of banning app after platform after app as users move to the next thing and the government struggles to keep up with regulation.

I can't say I'm surprised by American government clown show tactics at this point but this is, most definitely, clown show tactics.

[–] [email protected] 21 points 21 hours ago* (last edited 21 hours ago) (3 children)

The story about selling to Musk is coming from Bloomberg. Meanwhile the "pure fiction" quote comes from TikTok's reply to Variety's request for comments. Variety is unlikely to have access to anyone at TikTok senior enough to know the truth and willing to talk about it.

The purchase of valuable assets by someone in the president's inner circle after the government forces their owner to sell them is the sort of thing that usually involves Russian oligarchs. It would be a shameful act by the US government.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 19 hours ago

We're primed for four years of shameful acts that follow the trends of Russian oligarchs.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 21 hours ago

But if Bloomberg's source is actually Elon or someone form Drumpf's team, I’d have to assume it’s a lie.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 18 hours ago

It would be a shameful act by the US government.

So, for sure happening

[–] [email protected] 15 points 22 hours ago (1 children)

He probably told them to say that on the premise that after it's done he won't get punished, because that's how it's worked so far.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 21 hours ago

Yeah good chance they are lying. We will have to wait and see.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 21 hours ago* (last edited 21 hours ago)

Can't wait to see what happens when he starts posting tiktoks 10 times a day and then gets clowned on by teenagers. It could be another Howard Hughes moment.

[–] [email protected] -3 points 17 hours ago

TikTok also claims it isn't spyware