ByteDance – Page 3

One billion users, but trouble mounts for TikTok

17Mar

By adminNo Comments

Technology

One billion users, but trouble mounts for TikTok

[ad_1] TikTok's breakneck rise from niche video-sharing app to global social media behemoth has brought plenty of scrutiny, particularly over its links to China.Several governments have banned the app from their equipment over fears that data could be viewed by officials in Beijing, and the United States is now trying to force Chinese parent company ByteDance to sell its prized asset. So is TikTok a spying tool for Beijing, a fun video-sharing app, or both? - Under pressure - Global action against TikTok kicked off in earnest in India in 2020.It was among the Chinese apps barred after deadly clashes on the border between India and China, with New Delhi saying it was defending its sovereignty.The same year, US President Donald Trump threatened a ban and accused TikTok of spying for Ch...

Belgium bans TikTok from government phones after US, EU

11Mar

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Belgium bans TikTok from government phones after US, EU

[ad_1] Belgium is banning TikTok from government phones over worries about cybersecurity, privacy and misinformation, the country's prime minister said Friday, mirroring recent action by other authorities in Europe and the U.S.The Chinese-owned video sharing app will be temporarily prohibited from devices owned or paid for by the Belgium's federal government for at least six months, according to a post on Alexander de Croo's website. TikTok didn't respond immediately to a request for comment. Owned by China's ByteDance, the company has long maintained that it does not share data with the Chinese government and that its data is not held in China. TikTok unveiled new measures this week to ease concerns about protecting user data in Europe.But the European Union's three main institutions ...

TikTok Could Control Data and Divide Americans, FBI’s Wray Says

9Mar

By adminNo Comments

Technology

TikTok Could Control Data and Divide Americans, FBI’s Wray Says

[ad_1] FBI Director Christopher Wray said TikTok could be used to control data and software on millions of devices in the US and drive narratives to divide Americans while even intelligence agencies might miss manipulation by the Chinese-owned video app.“We're not sure that we would see many of the outward signs of it happening if it was happening,” Wray said Wednesday. “This is a tool that is ultimately within the control of the Chinese government and to me it screams out with national security concerns.” Wray responded to questions from Republican Senator Marco Rubio during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on the annual report on worldwide threats from US intelligence agencies. Rubio called TikTok, the popular app owned by Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd., “one of the most valuabl...

Chinese livestreamers flock outdoors for late-night tips

24Feb

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Chinese livestreamers flock outdoors for late-night tips

[ad_1] In the dead of night on a bridge in southern China, around two dozen livestreamers sat crooning and chatting into microphones, their identical ring lights spaced a few metres apart in glowing rows. The broadcasters gather in spots like this in the city of Guilin most nights in hope of standing out to users scrolling through reams of livestreams on Douyin, China's version of TikTok, where viewers can donate to their favourite streamers. "There are too many indoor livestreamers," said 27-year-old Qiao Ya, who sings and talks about daily life to anyone who happens across her channel from 9:00 pm to 3:00 am every night. "Since I'm relatively average and don't have any skills, I stream outside to use the views to attract online 'passers-by'." ...

Amazon’s Dreaded `Day Two’ Is Too Close for Comfort

4Feb

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Amazon’s Dreaded `Day Two’ Is Too Close for Comfort

[ad_1] It looks like “Day Two” is coming fast for Amazon. Thursday's earnings update capped a rough year for the tech giant. It was on the wrong end of consumer spending on essentials and services as inflation soared last year. Its cloud customers pulled back. It closed dozens of sorting facilities after overbuilding to accommodate a wave of online pandemic shopping. It made plans to lay off thousands of people across its hardware and retail businesses. And on Thursday Amazon.com Inc. printed its first annual loss since 2014 with a warning that the new year was off to a tepid start. In a sign of the times, Chief Executive Officer Andy Jassy got on the post-earnings analyst call himself, a first in his year-and-a-half-long tenure. Jeff Bezos, who often referred to “Day Two” as shor...

EU tells TikTok to respect data laws as CEO visits

11Jan

By adminNo Comments

Technology

EU tells TikTok to respect data laws as CEO visits

[ad_1] The European Union warned Chinese-owned online giant TikTok on Tuesday to respect EU law and ensure the safety of European users' data. The European Union warned Chinese-owned online giant TikTok on Tuesday to respect EU law and ensure the safety of European users' data, as the video-sharing app's CEO met top officials in Brussels.TikTok, whose parent company ByteDance is Chinese, has come under fierce Western scrutiny in recent months amid concerns over how much access Beijing has to user data. TiKTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew held talks for the first time with EU vice-presidents Margrethe Vestager and Vera Jourova, the bloc's home affairs commissioner Ylva Johansson and justice commissioner Didier Reynders. "I count on TikTok to fully execute its commitments to go the extr...

ByteDance Employees Inappropriately Gained Access to TikTok User Data

23Dec

By adminNo Comments

Technology

ByteDance Employees Inappropriately Gained Access to TikTok User Data

[ad_1] TikTok parent company ByteDance Ltd. found that some employees inappropriately gained access to data for some American users, complicating the Chinese technology giant’s already-fraught efforts to convince US lawmakers that its app is secure. TikTok parent company ByteDance Ltd. found that some employees inappropriately gained access to data for some American users, complicating the Chinese technology giant's already-fraught efforts to convince US lawmakers that its app is secure.“The individuals involved misused their authority to obtain access to TikTok user data,” Shou Chew, chief executive officer of the popular mobile video-sharing app, told employees in a memo viewed by Bloomberg. The data access stemmed from an internal ByteDance investigation launched over the summer to...

Taiwan probes TikTok for suspected illegal operations

19Dec

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Taiwan probes TikTok for suspected illegal operations

[ad_1] Taiwan's government has opened a probe into Chinese-owned social media platform TikTok on suspicion of illegally operating a subsidiary. Taiwan's government has opened a probe into Chinese-owned social media platform TikTok on suspicion of illegally operating a subsidiary on the island, and warned that the social media platform was being used by Beijing to spread disinformation. TikTok, which is not widely used in Taiwan, has come under pressure mostly in the United States on concerns about China getting access to users personal data, which the company denies. In a statement late on Sunday, Taiwan's China-policy making Mainland Affairs Council said that on Dec. 9 a working group under the Cabinet had discovered that TikTok was suspected of "illegal commercial operations" i...

Kuaishou Revenue Beats Estimates After Fending off ByteDance

22Nov

By adminNo Comments

Technology

Kuaishou Revenue Beats Estimates After Fending off ByteDance

[ad_1] Kuaishou Technology’s revenue beats estimates, holding its own against a slowing Chinese economy and competition from TikTok owner ByteDance Ltd. Kuaishou Technology's revenue beat estimates, holding its own against a slowing Chinese economy and competition from TikTok owner ByteDance Ltd.Revenue was 23.13 billion yuan ($3.2 billion) for the three months ended September, compared with the average analyst projection for 22.6 billion yuan. Net loss came in at 2.7 billion yuan, versus the estimated loss of 3.7 billion yuan. China's largest short-video company after ByteDance is struggling with sluggish consumer spending and strict Covid restrictions, while competition intensifies from Tencent Holdings Ltd.'s WeChat and Bilibili Inc. Chinese retail sales contracted 0.5% in October ...

SpaceX Is in Funding Talks That Would Value It at Over $150 Billion

16Nov

By adminNo Comments

Technology

SpaceX Is in Funding Talks That Would Value It at Over $150 Billion

[ad_1] Elon Musk’s SpaceX is in talks to raise a funding round that values the rocket-launch and satellite company at more than $150 bn, people familiar with the matter said. Elon Musk's SpaceX is in talks to raise a funding round that values the rocket-launch and satellite company at more than $150 billion, people familiar with the matter said.The transaction being discussed represents a jump from the $125 billion valuation the company commanded earlier this year, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information. Terms including the price haven't been finalized and could still change, the people said. Shares are being discussed at roughly $85 apiece, up from a split-adjusted $70 during the last funding effort, according to the people. Investors may buy...