TikTok Saved From Shutting Down Due To White House-Approved Deal, WeChat Gets Temporary Reprieve From Federal Judge

TikTok Lives

The proposed SUNDAY (9/20) shutdown of BYTEDANCE's TIKTOK video app has been averted as Pres. DONALD TRUMP has approved a deal for ORACLE and WALMART to acquire stakes in TIKTOK's US operations, according to CNET.

Last week MICROSOFT was eliminated from the bidding (NET NEWS 9/14).

The new entity will be called TIKTOK GLOBAL, and ORACLE will acquire 12.5% stake in the new company, while WALMART will have 7.5%. The new venture will be run in the U.S., reportedly headquartering in TEXAS. Four of the company's five board members will be AMERICAN. ORACLE will provide secure cloud services that satisfy national security concerns about the CHINESE app, addressed in an Executive Order (NET NEWS 8/7). 

TRUMP, at a political rally in FAYETTEVILLE, NC on SATURDAY (9/19), noted that he requested "$5 billion into a fund for education so we can educate people as to real history of our country — the real history, not the fake history," according to CNN. So far it's not clear which company will monetize this education fund, or who will decide on what's "the real history" of the U.S.

Meanwhile TENCENT's popular messaging app WECHAT came off of the endangered list, as it was to have been shut down SUNDAY (9/20) as part of TRUMP's concerns for personal data being handed over to the CHINESE GOVERNMENT. However, "a federal judge on SUNDAY temporarily blocked the order, and the app will remain available for now," according to a report in CNN.

WECHAT, based in CHINA, provides a free source of communication with CHINA from anywhere in the world for its billion-plus and growing membership. Its loss of use in the U.S. is seen as a potential handicap to many CHINESE here in the U.S. looking to stay in touch with family and their trading partners here and in CHINA.

« see more Net News