TikTok ban: China attacks ‘bandit logic’ of House vote

China has criticised a expenses currently in Congress that could lead to the US ban of TikTok, accusing it of “unjustly” acting like a “bandit”

The parent company of TikTok may have six months to withdraw from the business in accordance with the House of Representatives bill, which would prohibit the app.

Although it still faces a difficult task in the Senate, President Joe Biden promises to mark it if it is accepted by Congress.

Beijing has vowed to take “necessary methods” to protect its interests.

TikTok is owned by Chinese firm ByteDance, a Beijing- based agency registered in the Cayman Islands.

US legislators have expressed concern about the game, claiming that the country’s information could be in Chinese hands, which could pose a threat to national security. TikTok’s users have rejected those charges.

The House overwhelmingly voted in favor of the proposed legislation on Wednesday, with 352 of its members voting in favor and 65 against. This is a rare example of bipartisanship.

Wang Wenbin, a spokeswoman for the Chinese government, stated at a press conference on Thursday that the bill’s passage “violates the principles of fair competition and fairness.”

” When one sees a good thing another man has and tries to take it for themselves, this is totally the logic of a bandit”, Mr Wang added.

He Yadong, a spokesperson for the Chinese government’s business ministry, stated that China would “take all required measures to safeguard its reasonable rights and interests.”

Whether the act has enough support to pass the US Senate is a mystery. The bill’s passage keeping the current status quo in position is even possible.

Republican Donald Trump has stated that he is now opposed, having formerly supported a ban.

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew claimed that the expenses would “defraud the hands of developers and little businesses” after it was approved in the House.

In a video posted on TikTok and X, formerly known as Twitter, Mr. Chew said,” It will also put more than 300, 000 American jobs at risk and it will take away your Twitter.”

On Wednesday, many TikTok” makers” told the BBC they feared for their livelihood and firms if the act becomes a rules.

” I buy things from small firms and put them on my platform,” said Alabama-based creator Ophelia Nichols, who has more than 12 million followers on the system.” I enhance them.” ” It’s the small businesses that may endure… you have to worry about that”.

Mr. Chew from TikTok even urged its users to speak out against the election and get in touch with their politicians, a move that has already seen the resounding calls from irate constituents.

The technique is one that has irked US politicians. One of the president’s i- partners, Texas Republican Chip Roy, told the BBC in an exam that he believes TikTok” shot itself in the feet” with the lobbying work.

He claimed that the work was” the advertising position that we’re seeing coming out of TikTok” and that it was “demonstrating that they want to use the strength of their systems to persuade people and tell them through their viewpoint.”

In addition to different social media platforms, TikTok is prohibited in China.

Otherwise, Chinese people use a related game, Douyin, which is only obtainable in China and subject to monitoring and repression by the state.

However, on Thursday, Canada’s authorities revealed that a national surveillance review of TikTok’s designed expansion in the nation, which silently began in September, is being conducted.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau declined to comment on the assessment or to say whether Canada is considering a ban related to the one that is being proposed in the US.

” We’re watching, of course, the conversation going on in the United States”, he told reporters.

Who could obtain TikTok?

Steven Mnuchin, the former head of the Treasury, announced on Thursday that he was assembling a group of buyers to prepare a bid to purchase TikTok.

” It’s a great company”, he told journalist CNBC, adding that it would be owned by a US business.

” There’s no way that the Chinese would ever let a US company individual something like this in China”, he added.

One of the celebrities of the TV series Shark Tank, American business Kevin O’Leary, has also stated that he is interested in buying the business.

Some of the biggest US companies reportedly looked into bids when the Trump administration ordered a sale in 2020, which was then estimated to have cost the company about$ 50 billion.

In the end, Microsoft defeated a group that included Oracle and Walmart. Due to legal issues and the transition to a new leadership, the agreement broke down.

Now, TikTok’s approach and marketing revenue have increased considerably, leading to an estimated pricing of$ 268bn.