Linus Tech Tips Discussion

 US TikTok going under new ownership, will see algorithm changes I will preface this with saying my intent is not to discuss the political situation, rather to discuss yet another change to TikTok in the United States.   Summary In the wake of a new deal by the US government, TikTok's operations in the US will be contracted out by parent company ByteDance to Oracle and Silver Lake. These two companies are confirmed to be buyers of TikTok's US operations as of tonight, with Oracle in particular owning a massive 80% stake. The deal includes licensing TikTok's algorithm, meaning that American TikTok users will now have their recommendations controlled by US-based ownership rather than ByteDance. Furthermore, US user data will now be stored domestically. The deal is confirmed, but has not been signed into law yet (the deadline for doing so is 3 months after proposal, Dec. 16, 2025.) It is not disclosed how revenue from US-controlled TikTok will work; eg. if ad revenue and TikTok shop payments will be processed via Oracle rather than ByteDance, thus providing a further economic incentive for this acquisition.   Quotes Quote "According to reports this week, Oracle and its partners will hold an 80 percent stake in a new U.S. TikTok entity, while ByteDance will retain a minority share. U.S. data will be stored on Oracle servers in Texas, and the American version of TikTok will run on a separate algorithm from the global app." -planettoday "While U.S. officials insist the deal is about national security and data privacy, the arrangement effectively hands control of the nation’s most youth-oriented social media platform to investors with clear ideological commitments." - planettoday My thoughts From the data privacy standpoint, this could be arguably beneficial. China requires any company operating in the country to provide user data to the CCP upon request, and having a separate algorithm and US-based servers would protect US users from this particular issue. Let's remind ourselves, though, that the US government has very close ties to Oracle, so will now have easier access to user data. It is certainly a change to be aware of. However, there have also been many concerns raised in the US about the "Chinese government manipulating the TikTok algorithm", but this deal simply raises the same issue under new ownership. Without getting too deep into my political stance, any government having direct control over any social media app is bound to raise issues.    Perhaps it will be a nothing burger like the hundred US government/TikTok false flags in years previous, or perhaps this time it will pan out...   Sources This source is quite politically charged but has the most recent information confirming that the deal happened.