Amber Neely
As President Trump continues to call for the sale of TikTok with a percentage of the sale going to the US Treasury, experts and Chinese government-controlled media are weighing in on the dangerous implications of such a deal.
On Friday, Trump had declared that he would soon be banning controversial short-form video app TikTok, claiming that the China-owned company posed a threat to national security. On Monday, he clarified that the company could continue to operate in the U.S. if they sold their U.S. arm to an American-owned company. He also stated that he believed a significant portion of the money from the sale should go to the U.S. Treasury.
When later asked whether the money should come from Microsoft or TikTok's parent company, the China-owned ByteDance, he said the U.S. should receive a significant portion of the deal regardless of who paid the fee.
"It's a little bit like the landlord/tenant; without a lease the tenant has nothing, so they pay what's called key money,' or they pay something," Trump said. "But the United States should be reimbursed or should be paid a substantial amount of money, because without the United States they don't have anything, at least having to do with the 30%."
As CNN and other venues point out, Trump's "deal" has no basis in antitrust law. Several experts have compared the deal to mafia racketeering.
"This is quite unusual, this is out of the norm," former chief counsel for the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division Gene Kimmelman said. "It's actually quite hard to understand what the president is actually talking about here. ... It's not unheard of for transactions to have broader geopolitical implications between countries, but it's quite remarkable to think about some kind of money being on the table in connection with a transaction."
Experts point out that this does not solve alleged security issues, but continues to exacerbate ongoing problems.
"...I think this is part of the splintering of the Internet into competing national networks," Mark Lemley, director of Stanford University's program in law, science, and technology, said. "I think that's a problem, and splitting TikTok into different national entities ... is only going to make that problem worse."
TikTok has gone on record stating that they remain committed to their American user base.
"TikTok is loved by 100 million Americans because it is a home for entertainment, self-expression, and connection," company spokesperson Josh Gartner said. "TikTok will be here for many years to come."
China, however, seems less willing to work with the U.S. government. The China Daily newspaper ran an article stating that it will not accept President Trump's bullying, according to Reuters.
While Microsoft continues to pursue an acquisition deal for TikTok, ByteDance has started brainstorming other solutions. The company has begun looking for a new headquarters, outside of both China and the U.S.
"In light of the current situation, ByteDance has been evaluating the possibility of establishing TikTok's headquarters outside of the U.S., to better serve our global users," the company said.
TikTok has been under fire recently for "clipboard snooping" after an iOS 14 beta feature uncovered how frequently the app was accessing a users clipboard.
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"Why Trump dislikes TikTok
Analysis by James Clayton, BBC North America technology correspondent
Trump's dislike of TikTok goes further than just privacy concerns.
In India TikTok was banned after a border skirmish with China - it was caught up in a geopolitical feud. And that's what's happened here, too. Trump's sights are set firmly on China - and this should be seen through that lens.
TikTok says that it doesn't keep any data in China and would never give it to China.
But, in many ways it doesn't matter what they say, the fact that they are owned by a Chinese's company is guilt enough.
Not to be overlooked either is Trump's previous experience with TikTok.
Last month users claimed to have scuppered his Tulsa rally after signing up to tickets they had no intention of using.
And although there are Republican and conservative voices on TikTok, the profile of users in the US is generally young and liberal/left.
It's hard to believe that's not a factor here."
This idea of paying money to the Department of Treasury keeps getting more and more absurd.
TikTok is used by the PRC CPC for soft power propaganda. It's owned by the Chinese government, more or less, and somehow the US president is thinking of keeping it active in the US... for a fee? Am I missing something?
Even if they moved their 'headquarters' outside of China, the Chinese government would still maintain some influence over the platform.
This news is pretty odd. If someone has a better handle on this, please do explain.
I don't use or care about TikTok, what I do care about is the continued illegal activities of our president. He keeps finding someone who says what he's doing is allowed but once he's out of office he will pay for everything illegal he and others have done. He continues to think like a CEO instead of our president. He doesn't own the USA, he simply acts as one of the three EQUAL branches of the USA. Can't wait for the USA to get back to something closer to normal where most things follow the Constitution instead of everything he does is contrary to it.
These things should be simple to solve.
Evidence. Accusation. Resolution.
Unfortunately, the US now has a reputation for ignoring the first point.
This is just another piece in the US-China fight for influence.