What is TikTok Global and what are the changes for the app in the US?

By Harriet Piercy

Published Sep 21, 2020 at 12:38 PM

Reading time: 2 minutes

On Saturday, President Donald Trump declared that a deal has just been approved, giving Oracle and Walmart a minority stake in TikTok’s global business, which means the video app will continue its operations in the US, for now. But what exactly is going on with TikTok in the US? Here’s everything you need to know.

Has Trump banned TikTok in the US?

ByteDance, which is the Chinese owner of TikTok, has undergone a turbulent few weeks of discussion. On Friday, the Trump administration banned TikTok as well as WeChat, another China-based chat and commerce app from being downloaded, claiming that the app violated the privacy of US citizens. The country’s ultimatum was that for the app not to be shut down completely it would have to be sold to a US entity. However the murky waters have somewhat cleared, having finally received Trumps ‘blessing’ and the official postponement of the apps download ban for one week in order to sort out the following deal.

With a 7.5 per cent stake carved off to Walmart, and a 12.5 per cent stake to Oracle who will soon become the app’s cloud provider, hosting all US user data, ByteDance has now confirmed that Oracle will be a “trusted technology partner,” and Walmart a “commercial partner.”

TikTok confirmed its new status with a tweet over the weekend and added that the arrangement would promise 25,000 jobs across the country by maintaining and expanding the app’s global headquarters in the US. The company ended its statement admitting that there was still work to do on the final agreements, but that Walmart’s CEO Doug McMillon will be one of five board members of the newly created company, TikTok Global.

What will the new TikTok deal mean?

A statement from ByteDance concludes that this arrangement does not entail any transfer of algorithms and technologies, and that Oracle instead has the authority to check the source code—the source code forms the basis for applications and software. As part of the Oracle and Walmart deal, ByteDance confirmed that it would do a round of pre-IPO financing (initial public offering). TikTok Global will then retain an 80 per cent subsidiary of ByteDance as a result, which in turn gives it the majority of control. The companies involved said they would work towards a public listing in the US within a year.

Trump commented that the new company, TikTok Global will “have nothing to do with any outside land, any outside country, it will have nothing to do with China. It’ll be totally secure. That’ll be part of the deal.” ByteDance, the Beijing-based company with majority ownership of TikTok seems to contradict that—however, according to CNBC the company is currently 40 per cent owned by US venture capital firms, which technically means that the Trump administration can claim that TikTok Global is now majority owned by US money.

There are still many speculations, but ByteDance has issued a statement with the hopes of issuing some clarity on the deal that has captured global attention over the last few weeks. All of this being said, the deal is not closed yet. It still needs to be approved by the Chinese government, and on Saturday, China’s Ministry of Commerce published a statement released by the Guardian that accused the US of bullying: “If the US insists on going its own way, China will take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies.”

Our contemplations are leaning towards the users though, does the success of this deal depend on them, and are they patient enough to wait all of this out with tempting alternatives looming on the horizon?

Keep On Reading

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

TikToker Victoria Paris slammed for comments about Paris bed bugs epidemic

By Charlie Sawyer

Golden Globes 2024: Kylie Jenner forbids Timothée Chalamet from taking picture with Selena Gomez

By Charlie Sawyer

Five of the best and easiest side hustles you need to jump on in 2024

By Charlie Sawyer

Gun safety expert warns how crucial Gen Z’s vote will be in 2024 US presidential election

By Abby Amoakuh

TikTok to ban all LGBTQIA+ content in Kenya to prevent app removal

By Abby Amoakuh

Oklahoma State Senator Dusty Deevers to criminalise watching porn with penalties of up to 20 years in prison

By Charlie Sawyer

Ron DeSantis’ obsession with the anti-woke agenda ruined his chances of becoming president

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

China’s on a mission to ban clothes that hurt people’s feelings. But what does that mean?

By Charlie Sawyer

Brooklyn Beckham launches London pop-up restaurant to bless us with his cooking

By Charlie Sawyer

Dua Lipa fan and Nicki Minaj fan get into a real-life standoff over internet beef

By Alma Fabiani

Travis Scott caught spray painting over John McEnroe’s Hall of Fame plaque

By Charlie Sawyer

Are UK-based citizens actually going to be forced into mandatory conscription?

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Woman miraculously comes back to life minutes before her own cremation

By Abby Amoakuh

Travis Barker’s ex-wife takes jab at his relationship with Kourtney, calls Kardashians disgusting

By Emma O'Regan-Reidy

Why are Gen Zers putting bows on everything? Explaining the coquette ribbon obsession

By Abby Amoakuh

Grace Beverley is being cancelled for asking fans to fund her wedding by buying her £42 planners

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Videos of Israeli content creators seemingly mocking Palestinians spark online controversy

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Influencer Chiara Ferragni issues apology amid €1M fine for misleading charity Christmas cake sale

By Charlie Sawyer

No, controversial comedian Matt Rife didn’t compare himself to Bin Laden

By Charlie Sawyer

A guide on how to save on your energy bills after CEO of British Gas owner admits he can’t justify his £4.5M salary