The Decentralists – Hot Topix: The TikTok Shotgun Wedding

On this episode of The Decentralists, we discuss how the U.S. wants to force a marriage between TikTok and the world’s largest software company, Microsoft. 

Eight months ago, we predicted the ban of TikTok was inevitable. Meanwhile, TikTok has tried to rebrand itself as an American company, without success. Now President Trump has given TikTok six weeks to be bought by an American company, and it looks like Microsoft is the leading candidate.

Will Microsoft buy TikTok completely or just some of it? Is this controversy just an attempt by Trump to distract from his failed response to the pandemic? Is this a sign of a geo-politically segmented Internet?

Whatever the case, it’s clear that social media is being weaponized by nations fighting an economic cold war with each other.

What does this mean for Chinese technology companies operating in the USA?

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