Beijing has a role in new Tik Tok deal, says Chinese professor

The Chinese government has played a role in the latest Tik Tok deal with Oracle and Walmart, seen as a reversal of President Donald Trump’s earlier stance, according to Professor Shen Yi at Fudan University.

The US administration on Saturday approved in principle a proposal from TikTok, Oracle and Walmart that will prevent TikTok from being shut down in the US. The deal involved setting up a new company in the US, named TikTok Global.

Bloomberg reported that TikTok is working with Walmart on a commercial partnership and Oracle is to be TikTok's "trusted technology provider."

“It comes as a result of a concerted effort from the Chinese government, ByteDance (parent company of Tik Tok) and US domestic forces to tackle their divergences, ” said Prof Yi in his opinion piece in Global Times, a state-backed news portal.

The academic from the School of International Relations and Public Affairs of Fudan University stated that “Beijing protects and supports the legitimate interests of Chinese enterprises abroad”.

In late August, ByteDance sued the Trump administration to protest against the US government's order to ban the video app.

Prof Yi said: “In addition, some relevant forces in the US have been promoting their cooperation with the Chinese side in a pragmatic manner.

“All the factors mentioned above have played a vital role in changing the stance of the US.”