TikTok has no plans to pull out of the United States (U.S) even if it is not sold to a U.S. company, the general manager for the app’s operations in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand said on Tuesday, 18th August, 2020.
Vanessa Pappas in an interview aired on NBC’s “TODAY” show, pushed back on claims that the TikTok app is a security threat to the U.S.
“TikTok is here for the long run. We are more than confident in our future.”
Her statements come as TikTok’s fate is still unknown in the U.S.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump in less than two weeks ago, signed an executive order that banned the company from doing business in the U.S. as of September 15, 2020.
According to reports, TikTok’s owner, ByteDance, which is based in Beijing has been having discussions with some probable buyers to either sell some or all of the app. Microsoft and Oracle are allegedly part of the bidding.
Vanessa Pappas assured that TikTok will continue to exist and will provide the same experience for users well after that deadline.
The app, which allows users to create and view short videos set to music, has captured the hearts and minds of Generation Z. It has more than 100 million users in the U.S., and a third of them are reportedly under the age of 13.
However, Trump and many lawmakers find the app as a threat. They argue that TikTok poses a threat to national security and those fears add to the already mounting tensions between the U.S and China.
operations in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand
Pappas on the other hand denied that TikTok poses a threat to the U.S and went on to say that the company has strict policy rules.
“We’re not a national security threat. We have very strict data controls in place. We have an amazing team building a world-class infrastructure, and that’s something that we put front and center in terms of protecting our users.”
She believes that TikTok has become a victim of the “geopolitical tension” between Washington and Beijing, and cited a recent CIA report that found no evidence that Chinese intelligence had accessed TikTok users’ data.
Yet, those tensions have forced ByteDance into a position where it will likely be forced to sell TikTok’s U.S. business.
“We definitely are committed to providing the exact same experience to our users today, in whatever scenario unfolds in the future.”
American ownership or not, TikTok will face increased competition in the U.S. In recent weeks, Facebook has launched its own TikTok-like service, Instagram Reels; Snapchat has introduced new TikTok-like music features; and Google’s YouTube is at work on a 15-second video tool.
Pappas confidently dismissed any competition when asked if she was worried that TikTok users might leave to other apps.
“You can certainly copy a feature, but you can’t copy a community,” she said. “And I think what’s really unique about TikTok is this amazing community that has found a home on the platform.”
