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Microsoft is reportedly in talks to buy TikTok's US operations

businessinsider.com

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Re: Microsoft is reportedly in talks to buy TikTok's US operations

#61

Post by fermienrico »

ogre_codes wrote: post #43

This is not good. Facebook or Google would be worse, but Microsoft is only marginally less bad here.

This is far better than having facial recognition data in the hands of CCP. I am not a fan of US gov, but if I had the choice, I wouldn't side with CCP. The genie is already out and we've failed to put laws in place to stop all this data collection way back in 2004. Surprisingly, I feel comfortable with Microsoft having this data. What a world we've created.

For those who are skeptical, just watch the Vice doc on how China tracks people, it's on a whole another level: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLo3e1Pak-Y

Re: Microsoft is reportedly in talks to buy TikTok's US operations

#62

Post by amrrs »

Microsoft is definitely a good candidate here for TikTok. With them missing Mobile-rise and Social media-rise, this acquisition seems to be a desperate attempt to cement their position in a hyper growth consumer product that's both Mobile and Social Media. Question is, Would it impact Microsoft's image? I mean, Tik Tok is known for their addictive design and Privacy controversy, so not sure how it goes well with the recent Good-guy image Microsoft's trying to portray itself.

Re: Microsoft is reportedly in talks to buy TikTok's US operations

#63

Post by peter303 »

mrweasel wrote: post #22

But why? It doesn't fit into anything. Sure Microsoft has previously bought weird things, but lately they've been pretty focused. Why would they buy TikTok+

Perhaps you could evolve another mobile OS out of TikTok that is not Android or iOS. MicroSoft failed to get traction with its two previous mobile OSes (perhaps because they were basically offering reworked Windows).

Re: Microsoft is reportedly in talks to buy TikTok's US operations

#64

Post by slipheen »

I think it's a clever play.

It would help address the spyware concern by moving it to a US company, and give them a better foothold in Social Networking than Linked-in provides.

I'd have a few concerns about if MS can keep it growing-

For one, I worry that Microsoft may mismanage it, similar to how they treated Skype. We saw Yahoo buy many reasonable smaller social networks (Flickr, Delicious, Tumblr) and was never able to make it work. Microsoft has seemed to get better at acquisions lately though, so they may be able to pull it off.

The other concern is that youth-based social networks tend to have a short half-life; Snap isn't exactly taking over the world anymore.

But personally, I absolutely think it'd be worth the gamble. The price is relatively low (just over 1 quarter of revenue), and if they can keep it going it's a good hedge against FB, if nothing else.

Re: Microsoft is reportedly in talks to buy TikTok's US operations

#65

Post by encom »

hyperdimension wrote: post #20
mensetmanusman wrote: post #15

Hopefully it will be rebranded MikMok or ZuneZok. This seems like a dumb move, why would MS want to get tied up in the horrors of social media when they have such a profitable empire. They couldn’t possibly tie in MicMok to Office 365 and have anything good come from it.

"Microsoft (R) Passport Live TikTok.NET 2020 Datacenter Edition, part of the Windows Live Social Dynamics suite"

This reminds me of this old classic.

Microsoft Re-Designs the iPod Packaging https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUXnJraKM3k

Re: Microsoft is reportedly in talks to buy TikTok's US operations

#68

Post by emptysongglass »

franklampard wrote: post #58
emptysongglass wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is exactly it. There's widespread fear that China is buying its way into the personal data of billions through its state-sponsored businesses like Huawei and ByteDance.

Is TikTok really state-sponsored? Do you have any source?

It's not that ByteDance, owners of TikTok, are especially state-sponsored (though given the treasure trove of user data they're sitting on, especial isn't a stretch of the imagination): all Chinese corporations are either actively overseen by a CCP committee or potentials to be.

See https://thediplomat.com/2019/12/politics-in-the-boardroom-th...

Re: Microsoft is reportedly in talks to buy TikTok's US operations

#69

Post by hakka-nyu-su »

jtmarmon wrote: post #60
mullingitover wrote: post #27

I never really understood the panic over TikTok. Is the fear about security, or is the fear that China might actually have successful social media product in the US?

Speaking personally, here's why TikTok concerns me: TikTok is a Chinese business, and China has shown no limit to how much it will meddle in the affairs of and even take control of Chinese businesses for the furthering of the Chinese state's agenda. Simultaneously, TikTok has captured the daily attention spans of millions of Americans, many of them especially young and impressionable. They've captured their attention…

Does China really identify as "a country that views the US as its enemy (politically, economically, philosophically)" or is that just a projection of how the US feels about China?
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