{"id":269479,"date":"2020-09-22T05:22:05","date_gmt":"2020-09-22T09:22:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=269479"},"modified":"2020-09-22T05:22:05","modified_gmt":"2020-09-22T09:22:05","slug":"trumps-tiktok-deal-explained-who-is-oracle-why-walmart-and-what-does-it-mean-for-our-data","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2020\/09\/22\/trumps-tiktok-deal-explained-who-is-oracle-why-walmart-and-what-does-it-mean-for-our-data\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump’s TikTok deal explained: who is Oracle? Why Walmart? And what does it mean for our data?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Trump had earlier ordered TikTok to be removed from mobile app stores but enforcement of the order could be delayed if the Oracle-Walmart deal goes ahead. (File Photo: Kon Karampelas\/Unsplash)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Plot twists in the TikTok saga continue to emerge daily, with a proposed deal to secure the future of the video sharing platform in the United States now in doubt.<\/p>\n

Under the deal \u2014 which US President Donald Trump initially approved<\/a> but now may not<\/a> \u2014 US computer tech firm Oracle and retailer Walmart proposed a joint venture called TikTok Global, which would see customer data move to US-controlled infrastructure.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

This venture would have allowed TikTok to continue operating in the US. Trump had earlier ordered<\/a> TikTok to be removed from mobile app stores<\/a> but enforcement of the order could be delayed if the Oracle-Walmart deal goes ahead.<\/p>\n

Questions remain: what difference will this deal (if approved) make to the TikTok service; how will it affect the security concerns for governments (and users) in the US and Australia; and is this just political posturing with the US elections looming?<\/p>\n

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\n
\nRead more:
\nThe US has lots to lose and little to gain by banning TikTok and WeChat<\/a>
\n<\/strong>
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

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The Oracle-Walmart deal<\/h2>\n

This deal would see Oracle and Walmart take around 20% of TikTok Global, with ByteDance (the Beijing-based owner of TikTok) retaining 80%.<\/p>\n

News reports suggest Walmart and Oracle may pay a combined US$12 billion<\/a> for their stake in TikTok Global.<\/p>\n

Trump has said<\/a> he wants US$5 billion from companies creating TikTok Global to go into an education fund to teach American children \u201cthe real history of our country\u201d.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

ByteDance had earlier this month rejected a plan<\/a> by Microsoft to buy the US arm of TikTok, which cleared the way for the Oracle deal. Oracle\u2019s involvement was likely influenced by a recent decision by video meeting software firm Zoom to use Oracle cloud infrastructure<\/a>. Oracle\u2019s surprise win in that deal over more familiar names such as Amazon Web Services was a public relations boon for Oracle.<\/p>\n

Walmart was an unexpected contender for the TikTok Global partnership, but it makes sense; access to the TikTok user base opens significant marketing opportunities<\/a> for Walmart to benefit from a large, younger audience.<\/p>\n

What does this mean for TikTok users?<\/h2>\n

If the deal goes ahead \u2014 and that is far from certain \u2014 most users will not notice any difference. TikTok users will still be able to make viral videos and confuse non-TikTok users.<\/p>\n

As TikTok already stores data in the US or Singapore<\/a>, the move to Oracle-provided infrastructure is unlikely to have any tangible impact on users.<\/p>\n

The (claimed) national security concerns<\/a> will likely remain \u2013 if ByteDance retains a significant share in TikTok Global, there will still be US concerns over Chinese government influence.<\/p>\n

\n


\n
\nRead more:
\nTrump’s attempts to ban TikTok and other Chinese tech undermine global democracy<\/a>
\n<\/strong>
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

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The potential for the Chinese Communist Party to demand access to user data through its National Intelligence Law<\/a> will still be of concern, as the law applies to any Chinese-owned company (and being the majority stakeholder may be enough to enable such powers to be applied).<\/p>\n

This hasn\u2019t been put to the test yet, but in a similar discussion relating to Huawei 5G technology<\/a>, China law expert and New York University professor Jerome Cohen said there was \u201cno way Huawei can resist any order from the [People\u2019s Republic of China] government or the Chinese Communist Party to do its bidding in any context, commercial or otherwise.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of course the same is true for any US-owned organisation, thanks to the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data (CLOUD) Act<\/a>, which gives the US government very similar powers.<\/p>\n

So even if ByteDance sold the entire TikTok platform to a US company, Australian users\u2019 data would still be subject to access requests; they\u2019d just be from the US government rather than the Chinese Communist Party.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, Oracle was quick to provide reassurances over data security, with chief executive Safra Cruz saying<\/a> he was \u201c100% confident in our ability to deliver a highly secure environment to TikTok and ensure data privacy to TikTok\u2019s American users, and users throughout the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Setting aside concerns over location and access to user data, the proposed deal would still seem to leave the TikTok algorithms in the hands of ByteDance<\/a>. This may yet cause the deal to fail, and seems to be at odds with Trump\u2019s comment<\/a> that the deal:<\/p>\n

\u2026 will have nothing to do with China. It\u2019ll be totally secure.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

How much of this is influenced by politics?<\/h2>\n

In the lead-up to the November US elections, Trump has promoted a narrative that he is the \u201cprotector\u201d of Americans<\/a> against external, particularly Chinese, threats \u2014 from coronavirus to Tik Tok.<\/p>\n

A Californian federal judge<\/a> has halted Trump\u2019s attempt to limit Chinese social media apps. The fact this happened in a state led by a Democrat, Tik-Tok-using governor<\/a> allows Trump to accuse his rivals of blocking his efforts.<\/p>\n

The deal is still up in the air. Trump might have been happy with a win, but whether or not he gets one doesn\u2019t matter. He\u2019s already cast China as a threat, he\u2019s deflected attention from COVID-19 and focused the discussion on a foreign government<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But what does all this mean for Australians? Ultimately, not much.<\/p>\n

Australia doesn\u2019t use China as a scapegoat in the way Trump\u2019s America has. And although relations with China are strained<\/a>, Australians are more acutely aware of our financial and cultural ties with China. In the US, China\u2019s public influence is niche and diluted.<\/p>\n

At the end of the day, though, Trump railing against China is like the father of a teenage girl hating his daughter\u2019s boyfriend. He can make a lot of noise about it, but, in the end, his influence is limited. She\u2019s going to grow up and do whatever she wants.\"The<\/p>\n

Paul Haskell-Dowland<\/a>, Associate Dean (Computing and Security), Edith Cowan University<\/a><\/em> and Nathalie Collins<\/a>, Academic Director (National Programs), Edith Cowan University<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

This article is republished from The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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