Trump is threatening repercussions to coax ByteDance into a deal, but whether the Chinese and U.S. governments will both assent remains unclear.

Combining elements of technology, business, pop culture, national security, international competition, and President Donald Trump’s direct involvement, the new TikTok deal can be challenging to understand. Below, a quick summary of the deal, based mainly on the Wall Street Journal’s excellent report.
TikTok is an app that has filled a worldwide niche left open by social media giants like Facebook and Twitter. Despite ByteDance’s protestations, China’s record suggests it has full access to TikTok’s information.
India first banned TikTok outright in late June amid border tensions with China. The United States, citing security concerns, threatened to follow suit shortly thereafter. Enter Trump, whom I suspect sees in TikTok the opportunity to capture a highly desirable property. Just $5 a month.
By September, Oracle and Walmart had taken up the American side of the deal. In this configuration, Trump dropped his demand for the algorithm in return for minimally more secure conditions. However, it remains unclear whether even this reduced arrangement will pass muster in Beijing or indeed with CFIUS.

This article was written by Ben Lowsen

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