Ex-Dodgers owner Frank McCourt pursues TikTok acquisition amidst legal challenges to the app's ban.
Frank McCourt, a wealthy businessman and former baseball team owner, announced his plans to buy TikTok on Wednesday. McCourt has been critical of technology companies for exploiting their users and hindering the internet's initial open-minded spirit. He didn't reveal how much he intends to spend on the app or its estimated worth.
McCourt didn't discuss how he would handle the Chinese government's anticipated rejection, which would probably cause China to enforce TikTok's secretive recommendation algorithm export restrictions. Despite this, McCourt viewed the potential purchase of TikTok as an opportunity to reshape how social media operates. In his vision, TikTok would operate on an open-source, decentralized system, giving users complete control of their data regardless of the social media platform they use.
"We must safeguard the health and well-being of our children, families, democracy, and society," McCourt stated. "We believe we can preserve—and enhance—the TikTok experience by giving individuals and content creators on the platform the value and control they deserve over who has access to their data and how it's utilized."
McCourt is collaborating with Guggenheim Securities and Kirkland & Ellis to develop his investment. Berners-Lee, creator of the World Wide Web, is also supporting this endeavor.
This isn't the first attempt to buy TikTok. Mnuchin, former US Treasury Secretary, announced in March that he was putting together a bid, as did Kevin O'Leary, Canadian chair of private venture capital firm O'Leary Ventures.
TikTok, on the other hand, repeatedly stated it's not for sale. TikTok has responded by taking legal action, suing to block the new law earlier this month. The company claims that separating from its Chinese parent company is not an option and that the legislation would result in the app's US ban in January 2023.
TikTok's lawsuit states the US government is infringing on the First Amendment by "expressly singling out and banning" the short-form video app in an unconstitutional abuse of congressional power. The lawsuit also claims it would impact both the platform and its American users.
Eight TikTok content creators filed a separate suit against the potential ban. Their lawsuit considers the law a "serious restriction on speech that violates the First Amendment" and alleges it would close down a crucial form of communication that has become an integral part of American life.
The group consists of a college football coach, a rancher and ex-US Marine, and a small business owner with skincare products, among others, with a total of approximately 14 million TikTok fans. Some of the creators fear losing their Creator Fund money and profit from promoting their small businesses if the app is banned, and struggling to switch to other platforms.
"As Americans, we should have the freedom to select the apps we use," Topher Townsend, a creator involved in the lawsuit, said. "TikTok significantly impacts my income and has enabled me to be a full-time creator for almost four years now... This new law is being driven by larger politics, but the outcome could harm many people, including me."
TikTok didn't respond to the creators' suit, and the US Department of Justice didn't immediately reply to a request for comment.
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McCourt, in his pursuit of buying TikTok, sees potential in reshaping social media using tech solutions, such as an open-source, decentralized system. Street performers and small businesses on TikTok, who rely on the platform for income, express concerns about the potential ban on the app, highlighting its impact on their businesses and creative freedom.
Source: edition.cnn.com
