Microsoft Confirms It's in Talks To Buy TikTok from ByteDance, Says Trump is On Board 69
Microsoft has confirmed that it is in talks to purchase TikTok from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, and may make moves before summer is out. From a report: The decision, according to Microsoft, follows a conversation between its CEO and President Trump, who just days ago threatened to use an executive order to ban the app from the United States. In a blog post published Sunday night, Microsoft also said it may "invite other American investors to participate" in the deal, though "on a minority basis." These discussions will be wrapped up by Sept. 15. TikTok has increasingly come under scrutiny over largely baseless claims that it hands American users' data over to the Chinese government. Detractors say even the potential for that makes the app, best known for viral challenges and teen dance trends, a national security threat. Trump has been among the loudest, though it's been speculated that his most recent outburst was nothing more than a negotiation ploy. Further reading:
Chinese internet users brand ByteDance CEO a 'traitor' as TikTok seeks US buyer.
New business model for Chinese companies? (Score:5, Funny)
1. Introduce social media software to capitalize on a fad
2. Work the US president into a foaming rage
3. Get acquired by a stodgy old US tech company
4. ???*
5. Profit
6. Repeat
* Step 4 is optional.
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Sorta of. It's more like the CCP creates a state sponsored spy app, but then the US is forced to purchase it in order to disable it.
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Re:New business model for Chinese companies? (Score:4, Informative)
It's more like the US wants to buy a popular app. So sends their thugs in first to mess up the place, before they put in a lowball offer.
You were right but this guy said it better
Microsoft buys everything the government wants to control.
1. Skype decentralized, Gov didn't like it, Skype wouldn't budge, Microsoft buys Skype and first change is to centralize to spy on calls.
2. Github served with similar requests to share sensitive code repos with the gov, didn't budge, bought by Microsoft.
So todays news.... TikTok, big bad government thorn, BOOM microsoft is going to purchase it. Well no crap. Microsoft buys everything the government wants to pretend they aren't directly controlling
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You mean the state sponsored TFS?
Re: New business model for Chinese companies? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: New business model for Chinese companies? (Score:2)
You think an American company owning it is going to stop the spying (by either country)? Amusing.
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Or the other way round:
Your countries tech portfolio is missing something another country has?
1. Threaten with ban and force them to sell.
If I look back in history here, those forced sales of houses and companies for a fraction of the actual value have been rather usual.
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What is novel about Tik Tok that is missing from the US tech portfolio? I'm not a user, but as a casual observer I really fail to see what the excitement is about.
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The US actually had a very similar app: Vine.
For whatever reason it just didn't reach critical mass.
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Seems the obvious explanation really.
Bread and circus model for Chinese companies? (Score:4, Insightful)
Well played, sir. Alas, I lack an extra mod point for you. Trying to build on your joke calls for a focus on Step 2.
No work involved there. It's more a matter of walking into the opportunity. America has reached the "Bread and Circuses" stage. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org] I would go so far as to argue that Rome was already past its peak and declining when the phrase was coined. Just wave any sort of flag at Trump and he'll gladly charge in hope of changing the subject. A Chinese red flag is especially attractive to the GOT [sic] right now and I'm just waiting to see how they crank up the racist aspects as the campaign nears its climax.
Me? My head is spinning. I cannot count how many times Trump has changed the subject in July. I couldn't even pick the top five acts in his 10-ring circus. Isn't there a Lily Tomlin joke to fit this situation? Or maybe Emo Philips? Something that starts with "Just when you think..." Or maybe a riddle answer for the question "What's the difference between fake outrage and the real thing?" (Putting on my philosopher's hat, I'm having trouble seeing how a state of mind can be fake, since it's still a state of mind.)
Come to think of it, now I have a comment about Step 3. Microsoft has an especially execrable record as the "stodgy old US tech company" that buys innovative companies and then destroys them. Can we start a tool on how long it will take Microsoft to destroy Tik Tok? The real profit-opportunity joke should be on how to flank attack such acquisitions?
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*sigh*
c/start a tool/start a [betting] pool/
Re: New business model for Chinese companies? (Score:1)
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Well, gee, all those captive customers who are stuck with Microsoft Windows and Office who have no choice and are finally forced to abandon Windows 7.
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I own Microsoft stock, actually. Yes, it's done quite well.
That doesn't mean Microsoft will do well pushing dance moves to teenagers.
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wouldn't that be as useful as buying "just the US portion of facebook"?
Says Trump is On Board (Score:3)
We need a bigger boat!
Translations (Score:4, Funny)
Translation:
- Microsoft was wondering why only Facebook/WhatsApp/Instagram and SnapChat should be getting all the money. They really want a part of the Private-data-stealing pie, too!
- Microsoft as usual, when unable to enter a market, will just acquire a competitor. They just went shoping for the best private-data-stealing pros! (China)
- Will it go the same way as Microsofft buying Nokia ?
Meanwhile:
- Screams of rages where heard coming from Zuckerberg's Volcano Evil Lair, as somebody managed again to snatch before him a potential solution for his post Facebook/WhatsApp/Instragram succession plan.
- Zuckerberg will pin a photo of Microsoft on his dart board, next to the photo of Snapchat that was already there...
Re:Translations (Score:5, Funny)
There's one flaw with this narrative. Reptiles don't function well in constant high heat of volcanoes. They lack heat management systems of warm blooded animals, so they overheat.
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Another excellent joke and appropriately modded. Is Slashdot 2020 slipping back into its distant past? The Nokia touch is especially acute humor. Tragic tale there, making the joke all the better.
I will note that I regard these sorts of politically driven fire sales are fake capitalism. However the biggest profits are probably going to the iPhone friends of Trump who knew when to short which shares in anticipation of Trump's next tweet. Or maybe the real estate speculators are making more money now snatchin
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It winds up being one more bundled feature of Office365 which nobody uses.
Antitrust suit (Score:2)
Next up:
Zuckerberg and SnapChat teaming up to file an antitrust lawsuit against "Microsoft TeamTok 365 for Windows Groups NT 4.56 Plus SP2" (Now with 25% less viruses !) accusing Microsoft to abuse their monopoly to bundle it with Office.
Oh Brother (Score:2)
That poor, put upon Chinese government. So innocent. So respectful of civil rights and right to privacy. Free internet. Free media. Free speech. That's the china I know!
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"TikTok has increasingly come under scrutiny over largely baseless claims that it hands American users' data over to the Chinese government."
Yup, this is the largely baseless assertion in the TFS that the claims are largely baseless.
There is a smell about this (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:There is a smell about this (Score:5, Funny)
"That's a nice information stealing app targeted at ADHD teenagers you have there, it would be a shame if something was to happen to it..."
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Agree. Here's the precedence [amazon.com].
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Really baseless??? (Score:4, Insightful)
How about this: Reddit user claimed to have successfully reverse-engineered it and shared what he learned about the Chinese video-sharing social networking service. Basically, he strongly recommended that people never use the app again, warning about its intrusive user tracking and other issues [boredpanda.com]
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How about this: Reddit user claimed to have successfully reverse-engineered it and shared what he learned about the Chinese video-sharing social networking service. Basically, he strongly recommended that people never use the app again, warning about its intrusive user tracking and other issues [boredpanda.com]
And this: Anonymous Hackers Target TikTok: ‘Delete This Chinese Spyware Now’ [forbes.com]
Bold claims (Score:2)
It would be nice if he showed his work since he claims to have reverse engineered other social media apps too.
They better follow through (Score:3)
Not surprised... (Score:4, Interesting)
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Each example you give is textbook fascism, by the way. I don't hear anyone screaming about that, for some reason.
Get Rich Quick.. (Score:3)
1. Make an app that allows people to spread information
2. Gain market share with vapid appealing content
3. Sell to 'surveillance friendly' megacorp
We live in a world where the Elite's FEAR people being able to share information without also being able to control it (Just look at what is happening on Facebook when it comes to Israel's ethnic cleansing of illegally occupied Palestine). If you can encrypt that information and make it peer to peer and claim privacy friendly you're a good target for purchase.
The trick to getting rich is to get market share.
People who think that 'China government spyware' could possibly be available to be purchased by a U.S. corporation is falling for a narrative that doesn't make sense - among an environment of the US Military 'Pivot to China'.
Or is this just to make twitter more valuable? (Score:2)
I do not think this is a good idea (Score:3)
Tiktok has been denounced as spyware.
New ownership is unlikely to alter that perception.
Microsoft is far better off launching their own competing platform, IMO.
Microsoft launch new thing? Like So.Cl? (Score:5, Informative)
> Microsoft is far better off launching their own competing platform, IMO.
Microsoft tried launching their own social network. It was called So.Cl. You may not remember it, because it was THAT successful.
Microsoft tried launching a new mobile platform. Then tried again. Then tried again when the second one failed.
Microsoft tried launching their own search to compete with Google. They named it "Bing", which is defined as "a heaping pile". Over the next 11 years, they managed to get 2.7% of the market.
The last time Microsoft successfully launched a new product was nineteen years ago, with Xbox.
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Or do you think that Microsoft simply wouldn't ever make something on their own that wasn't just as bad with respect to user privacy in the first place?
Re: Microsoft launch new thing? Like So.Cl? (Score:2)
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You bring up a good point - Microsoft does continue to sell stuff to the same corporate clients they always have. Office was new in 1985, but the web tie-ins over the last 10-15 years are newer.
I suppose if Tik Tok were an app for graying corporate executives, rather than teenage girls dancing, it would be in Microsoft's sweet spot.
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Microsoft is far better off launching their own competing platform, IMO
:-D :-D :-D
Hopefully this is next... (Score:3)
Hopefully TikTok is next in a long line of things purchased by, and ruined by, Microsoft.
Happy trails, Bytedance, you'll at least get paid out for your efforts, though probably not as much as you would have if you sold it two months ago before you got outed and banned by governments.
Trump 2020 (Score:1)
Wonder how much Zuckerberg contributed to the Trump 2020 campaign
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Good Riddance. It was sleazy when it was called Musical.ly, Then it renamed itself to Tiktok because of similar bad publicity. Now it gets a buyout since changing it's name isn't going to save them now..
My guess is that Bytedance will take it's billions of MS money to buy out JOYY and start marketing Likee (which is basically Tiktok with a different name) during New Years Eve 2020.
What if MS buys a teeny weeny bit of TikTok (Score:2)
and all the users in the USA go somewhere else?
What a waste of money for MS!
No douby they'll (MS that is) will screw it up and make it 10x worse.
Oh wait...
Bring it on. I hope MS gets a really bloody nose on this deal.
It still works (Score:2)
It's Monday now, the site still works.
It's almost like President Trump is lying and bullsh*tting whenever he says anything.
Take Over (Score:1)
Re: Take Over (Score:1)
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What are you talking about, most Western social media is banned in China, period. Sometimes, after having established significant presence. Or do you think that an outright ban is any better than the threat of a ban plus an offer to buy?
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Frankly I think this has already happened, long ago. People are just now becoming aware of it, now that the establishment is so firmly entrenched that they are doing their corruption out in the open.
And Suddenly Things Make Sense (Score:2)
It turns out that the answers to these questions are irrelevant because he doesn't intend to actually ban it. He is just threateni
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He is just threatening that to do so in order to drive down the value of the app right before Microsoft's attempt to buy it
For sake of argument, let's assume this is the playbook.
Even then, what's wrong with it, provided that the US/Trump won't tolerate CCP-controllable viral apps on US networks, siphoning US folks' data?
Or should Microsoft pretend "TikTok US" is as valuable as it would be if it was, say, a Norwegian app? If so, why? The previous valuation on the assumption of free operation in the US was based on the pipe dream that the US will be OK with it. A possible counter-argument may be that in Microsoft's hands, the re
Be wary of this deal if Trump is now approving it. (Score:1)
This app has been used very effectively to mess with Trump's campaign rallies, and it's the only real reason he wanted to ban it. Proven more so when he didn't want to let Microsoft buy them at first, which would have eliminated the false claims of data security that he was hiding behind. Now he is on board? Be very worried about what concessions Microsoft just made to get him to change his mind. Trump wouldn't be on board unless he is getting ways to both monitor activist behavior and censor activist b
US taxpayer should get a Banking Commission (Score:2)
An employee of the US(Trump) facilitated the buyout.
Next up: executive order to Microsft (Score:1)
You know what's next... (Score:2)