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☆ Federal judge blocks Montana's TikTok ban, which would have been the first of its kind
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Jonathan Vanian | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

TikTok Music has launched on Wednesday in Australia, Singapore and Mexico to a small group of users. A federal judge in Montana has blocked a law that would have resulted in a state-wide ban of TikTok starting on Jan. 1, 2024. Before the judge's preliminary ruling, Montana was set to become the first U.S. state to ban the popular video and social media app, which is owned by the China-based tech giant ByteDance. ByteDance sued Montana in May to "prevent the state of Montana from unlawfully banning TikTok," the company said at the time. The lawmakers were concerned that the Chinese Communist Party may be able to access the data of U.S. citizens, and have considered implementing a nation-wide ban on TikTok.

Persons: Donald Molloy, Greg Gianforte, Molloy, General, ByteDance, Shou Zi Chew, TikTok Organizations: Communist Party, Montana, State, Chinese Communist Party, Oracle Locations: Australia, Singapore, Mexico, Montana, TikTok, U.S, China, Texas

☆ Asia’s tech giants lean toward desperate deals
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Anshuman Daga | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew arrives for a dinner, on the eve of the Paris Peace Forum at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, November 9, 2023. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew was feted in Indonesia where it has 125 million monthly active users when he pledged in June to invest billions of dollars in the region. But the global giant failed to anticipate regulatory hurdles in its biggest market for online shopping. TikTok’s viral video app would provide Tokopedia with a powerful new growth avenue for its online shopping and payments business. Yet as tech companies from the People’s Republic to Indonesia pull out all the stops to lift growth amid waning investor support, desperate new alliances are bound to emerge.

Persons: Shou Zi Chew, Gonzalo Fuentes, TikTok, China’s, GoTo, Patrick Walujo, Indonesia’s GoTo, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Paris Peace, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Companies, Google, Temasek, Bain &, Reuters Graphics Reuters Graphics, Tokopedia, HK, Global Digital, Djarum, Bloomberg, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, Rights SINGAPORE, Southeast Asia, Indonesia, Reuters Graphics Reuters Graphics Jakarta, Tokopedia, Lazada, Singapore, Indonesian, Thailand, People’s Republic, China

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Senate committee has issued bipartisan subpoenas to the CEOs of Discord, Snap and X, demanding that the heads of the three companies testify at a December hearing on protecting children online. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, the top Republican on the panel, announced Monday that they had issued the subpoenas to Discord CEO Jason Citron, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel and Linda Yaccarino, the CEO of X, formerly known as Twitter, “after repeated refusals to appear” during weeks of negotiations. "Big Tech’s failure to police itself at the expense of our kids cannot go unanswered,” the two senators said in a statement. The committee said that “in a remarkable departure from typical practice," Discord and X refused to accept service of the subpoenas and the panel was forced to enlist the U.S. Durbin and Graham said the committee remains in discussions with both Meta and TikTok and expects their CEOs, Mark Zuckerberg and Shou Zi Chew, to testify voluntarily.

Persons: Dick Durbin, South Carolina Sen, Lindsey Graham, Jason Citron, Evan Spiegel, Linda Yaccarino, “, X, Durbin, Graham, Mark Zuckerberg, Shou Zi Chew, Barbara Ortutay Organizations: WASHINGTON, —, South, Republican, U.S . Marshals Service, Social, Meta, Facebook, Associated Press Locations: South Carolina, Washington, San Francisco

☆ US Marshals serve CEOs of X and Discord with congressional subpoenas ahead of Big Tech child safety hearing
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Tech CEOs are once again being summoned to Congress to testify about their business practices — and this time, the US Marshals Service is getting involved. On Monday, the Senate Judiciary Committee said it had subpoenaed three top social media executives — X CEO Linda Yaccarino, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel and Discord CEO Jason Citron — for a Dec. 6 hearing on children’s online safety and content moderation. “At our February hearing on protecting children’s safety online, we promised Big Tech that they’d have their chance to explain their failures to protect kids. In a statement, X said it has been cooperating with the committee. “We have been working in good faith to participate in the Judiciary committee’s hearing on child protection online as safety is our top priority at X,” said Wifredo Fernandez, head of US & Canada government affairs at X.

Persons: —, Linda Yaccarino, Evan Spiegel, Jason Citron —, Mark Zuckerberg, Shou Zi Chew, Yaccarino, Citron, ”, Dick Durbin, Lindsey Graham, X, “, Wifredo Fernandez, ” Meta, didn’t Organizations: CNN — Tech, US Marshals Service, Committee, US, Big Tech, Republican, ” Locations: Sens, Canada

☆ U.S. senators expect Meta, TikTok CEOs to testify at hearing on child sexual exploitation
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) arrives for a hearing with the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee on President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 25, 2023. REUTERS/Leah Millis Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Nov 20 (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee said it will hold a Dec. 6 hearing on online child sexual exploitation and expects Meta (META.O) CEO Mark Zuckerberg and TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will agree to testify voluntarily. The committee also has issued subpoenas to the CEOs of Discord, Snap (SNAP.N), and X, formerly known as Twitter, to compel them to testify. "Big Tech’s failure to police itself at the expense of our kids cannot go unanswered,” said Durbin and Graham in a joint statement. Reporting by David Shepardson, Jasper Ward and Doina Chiacu; Editing by Caitlin Webber and Chizu NomiyamaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Lindsey Graham, Joe Biden’s, Leah Millis, Mark Zuckerberg, Shou Zi Chew, Dick Durbin, Republican Lindsey Graham, ”, Durbin, Graham, X, David Shepardson, Jasper Ward, Doina, Caitlin Webber, Chizu Organizations: . Sen, U.S . Senate, Capitol, REUTERS, Rights, U.S, Senate, Committee, Republican, U.S . Marshals Service, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S

☆ X, Snap and Discord CEOs subpoenaed by lawmakers to testify about child sexual exploitation
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Jonathan Vanian | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Lawmakers said Monday that they have issued subpoenas to the CEOs of X, Snap and Discord to compel the executives to testify on a hearing regarding online child sexual exploitation. Marshals Service to personally serve the subpoenas to Discord and X, which they characterized as "a remarkable departure from typical practice." Hearing from the CEOs of some of the world's largest social media companies will help inform the Committee's efforts to address the crisis of online child sexual exploitation." A Discord spokesperson said that, "Keeping our users safe, especially young people, is central to everything we do at Discord." "We have been actively engaging with the Committee on how we can best contribute to this important industry discussion," the Discord spokesperson said.

Persons: Linda Yaccarino, Vox, Dick Durbin, Lindsey Graham, Durbin, Graham, Wifredo Fernandez, Fernandez, Evan Spiegel, they've, Mark Zuckerberg, TikTok's Shou Zi Chew Organizations: The Ritz, Carlton, Lawmakers, U.S . Marshals Service, Big Tech, Twitter, CNBC, Committee, Meta, X Corp Locations: Laguna, Dana Point , California, Canada

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsJAKARTA, Nov 13 (Reuters) - TikTok has been holding talks with Indonesian e-commerce companies about possible partnerships, an Indonesian minister said on Monday, a month after Southeast Asia's largest economy banned online shopping on social media platforms. "Some e-commerce companies in Indonesia have talked to TikTok," he said in an interview, citing what the companies' executives told him. It was a particular blow to TikTok, which was forced to close its e-commerce service TikTok Shop. A TikTok Indonesia spokesperson was not available to comment. Until it stopped operations, TikTok Shop was delivering about 3 million parcels a day in Indonesia, sources have said.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Teten Masduki, TikTok, Tokopedia, Bukalapak, Blibli, Joko Widodo, Shou Zi Chew, Teten, Indonesia's, SEA's, Stanley Widianto, Ananda Teresia, Edwina Gibbs Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Indonesian, GoTo's, TikTok, YouTube, Meta, Google, Temasek Holdings, Bain & Co, HK, Lazada, Thomson Locations: Rights JAKARTA, Indonesian, Indonesia, Southeast, Singapore

☆ YouTube, TikTok must detail child protection measures by Nov 30, EU says
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A 3D printed Youtube and Tik Tok logo are seen placed on keyboard in this illustration taken, September 15, 2020. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBRUSSELS, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Alphabet's (GOOGL.O) YouTube and TikTok have been given a Nov. 30 deadline by the European Union to reply to an information request on how they protect children from illegal and harmful content, the European Commission said on Thursday. Google and TikTok did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The information request comes days after Breton told TikTok Chief Executive Officer Shou Zi Chew to spare no effort to counter disinformation on its platform, owned by China's ByteDance. "Based on the assessment of the replies, the Commission will assess next steps", the Commission said.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Thierry Breton, Breton, Shou Zi Chew, China's ByteDance, Sundar Pichai, Tassilo Hummel, David Evans Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, YouTube, European Union, European Commission, Big Tech, Digital Services, Google, Reuters, Wednesday, TikTok, DSA, Thomson Locations: Rights BRUSSELS, Breton

And tensions between the countries heightened earlier this year when a Chinese surveillance balloon was spotted traveling over sensitive U.S. airspace. The U.S. military shot down the balloon off the Carolina coast after it traversed sensitive military sites across North America. With all of the tensions, the two nations have worked to smooth economic ties. Xi similarly met with Blinken in June when the secretary of state traveled to Beijing for talks with Wang. In January, she had her first face-to-face meeting with former Vice Premier Liu He in Zurich.

Persons: Janet Yellen, Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Nicholas Szechenyi, ”, Biden, Shou Zi Chew, Wang Yi, Antony Blinken, Jake Sullivan, Xi, Wang, Yellen, Liu, “, Colleen Long, Aamer Madhani Organizations: WASHINGTON, —, Economic Cooperation, Center for Strategic, International Studies, APEC, Chinese Foreign, White, U.S, White House, Blinken, U.S . Treasury Department, China’s Ministry of Finance, Associated Press Locations: San Francisco, Asia, United States, China, U.S, Carolina, North America, Washington, Beijing, Zurich

☆ TikTok owner ByteDance offers employees buyback option at higher price to boost confidence
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Chinese technology giant ByteDance is offering to buy back stock options from employees at a higher price than earlier this year, in a bid to boost motivation and inject confidence among employees after a challenging year. RSUs or options are an instrument employees can purchase, which convert into actual shares if the company goes public or gets acquired. A ByteDance spokesperson confirmed the plan to CNBC and said the company aims to provide liquidity of its RSUs and options to motivate employees through buyback programs. ByteDance is not public. It is also a way for early employees who may have purchased stock options at a cheaper price to make some return on their investment.

Persons: Shou Zi Chew, ByteDance Organizations: Wednesday, CNBC, ByteDance, TikTok Locations: U.S

☆ X and TikTok are both under fire from the EU over hate speech and Israel-Hamas disinformation
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

TikTok's CEO and an X executive met with the European Commission's Věra Jourová on Tuesday. She said they both need to "step up" their efforts to counter hate speech. AdvertisementAdvertisementTikTok and X, formerly Twitter, need to "step up" their efforts countering hate speech, a European Commission vice president said. In posts on X, Jourová said the meetings were constructive but pointed out several areas of improvement, adding that X needs to do more to comply with the Digital Services Act. AdvertisementAdvertisementAs well as illegal hate speech, Jourová raised concerns about the platforms hosting pro-Hamas content in the wake of its attacks on Israel in October.

Persons: Jourová, —, Věra Jourová, Shou Zi Chew, Nick Pickles, X's, X, Elon Musk, TikTok Organizations: Service, European Commission, Digital Services, EU, Hamas, Elon Locations: Israel, Gaza, EU, Brussels

Companies TikTok FollowBRUSSELS, Nov 6 (Reuters) - TikTok must "spare no effort" to counter the spread of disinformation on the short video sharing app, EU industry chief Thierry Breton told the company's CEO on Monday, as the European Union steps up its efforts to curb the powers of Big Tech. "My services and I are now investigating whether this is enough to ensure compliance with the DSA (Digital Services Act)," Breton told Reuters in written comments after a video call with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew. "Because now more than ever, we must spare no effort to protect our citizens – especially children and teenagers – against illegal content and disinformation," he said. TikTok Public Policy Director Caroline Greer said in a post on social media platform X that the company was pleased that Breton recognised its compliance efforts. The DSA requires large online platforms to do more to tackle illegal and harmful online content on their platforms.

Persons: Thierry Breton, China's ByteDance, Breton, Shou Zi Chew, Caroline Greer, Chew, Vera Jourova, Didier Ryenders, Foo Yun Chee, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Big Tech, DSA, Services, Reuters, Big, EU, Values, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, European, Breton, Big Tech, Brussels

Chew will meet Breton on Nov. 6 and Jourova and Reynders on Nov. 7, a TikTok spokesperson said. He will update the commissioners on TikTok's data security regime called Project Clover which started to store European user data locally this year, a TikTok spokesperson said. The company has a data centre in Dublin, Ireland, and is building two more in Ireland and Norway. Breton last month gave TikTok an Oct. 25 deadline to provide information on its crisis response measures. Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Jason NeelyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Shou Zi Chew, Online Harms, Thierry Breton, Vera Jourova, Didier Reynders, TikTok, Chew, Breton, Foo Yun Chee, Sudip Kar, Gupta, Jason Neely Organizations: Energy, Commerce, Safeguard, Online, Capitol, Breton, Digital Services, Big Tech, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, BRUSSELS, EU, Brussels, Israel, Gaza, Reynders, Dublin, Ireland, Norway

Sundar Pichai, Chief Executive Officer of Alphabet, gestures as he speaks during a session of the 50th World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, January 22, 2020. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse Acquire Licensing RightsBRUSSELS, Oct 13 (Reuters) - EU industry chief Thierry Breton on Friday warned Alphabet (GOOGL.O) Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai to adhere to EU tech rules after the spread of disinformation on YouTube following Hamas' attacks in Israel, the latest company to be rebuked. False content about the Israel and Hamas conflict has proliferated on the major social media platforms over the past several days. According to Alphabet's YouTube, the company has quickly worked to remove harmful content after Hamas' attack and was prepared to take additional action. It has also rolled out a crisis resource panel in search with information from Israeli authorities for viewers in Israel.

Persons: Sundar Pichai, Denis Balibouse, Thierry Breton, Breton, Pichai, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Shou Zi Chew, Foo Yun Chee, Sudip Kar, Gupta, Sheila Dang, Louise Heavens, Diane Craft Organizations: Economic, REUTERS, Rights, YouTube, Twitter, Digital Services, Google, DSA, Thomson Locations: Davos, Switzerland, Rights BRUSSELS, Israel, Dallas

☆ Investors flock to defensive stocks and safe havens on worries about Israel-Hamas war
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( Krystal Hur | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The Israel-Hamas war is sending investors in search of defensive assets. Israel declared war on Hamas Sunday after the Palestinian militant group launched a brutal attack that killed at least 1,300 people. But investors have since bought up shares of virtually risk-free government bonds, indicating that Wall Street remains worried. Utilities, energy and real estate stocks have also outperformed the broader S&P 500 index’s roughly 1% gain this week. In August, a recently passed EU law known as the Digital Services Act went into effect for large online platforms, including the companies Breton addressed this week.

Persons: ”, George Smith, Bryan Hinmon, Hinmon, hasn’t, TikTok, Shou Zi Chew, Thierry Breton, Brian Fung, Breton, ” Breton, TikTok didn’t, Anna Cooban, ” Russia’s, Andrei Belousov, Read Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, CNN, Stock, Treasury, LPL, Twitter, Meta, Digital Services Locations: Israel, Palestinian, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Ukraine, Chew, Moscow

☆ Europe gives TikTok CEO 24 hours to respond about Israel-Hamas war misinformation
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew prepares to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing on TikTok: How Congress Can Safeguard American Data Privacy and Protect Children from Online Harms, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on March 23, 2023. European regulator Thierry Breton shared a stern letter to TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew on Thursday, claiming his office has "indications" that the platform is being used to distribute disinformation and illegal content around the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. Breton issued similar letters to X owner Elon Musk and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg this week. Under the European Union's newly enacted Digital Services Act, TikTok must monitor and remove illegal content such as terrorist content or illegal hate speech. Failure to comply with the European regulations around illegal content could result in fines worth 6% of a company's annual revenue.

Persons: Shou Zi Chew, Online Harms, Thierry Breton, Breton, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, TikTok, Chew, Musk, Linda Yaccarino, Zuckerberg Organizations: House Energy, Commerce, Safeguard, Online, Capitol, Washington , D.C, Services, Twitter, Meta, Facebook, CNBC Locations: Washington ,, Israel, Breton

Printed TikTok logos are seen in this illustration taken February 15, 2022. Breton's warning in a letter to Chew, first seen by Reuters, follows similar letters to X, formerly Twitter, owner Elon Musk and Meta Platforms' Mark Zuckerberg earlier this week. Breton subsequently posted the letter on social media platform Bluesky. Breton said in the letter to TikTok, owned by Chinese conglomerate ByteDance, that he had indications that it was being used to disseminate illegal content and disinformation in the EU after the Hamas attacks. The EU industry commissioner said rules on content moderation were clear in the EU Digital Services Act (DSA) and spelt out certain obligations in his letter.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Thierry Breton, Frenchman, Shou Zi Chew, Chew, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Breton, Linda Yaccarino, Foo Yun Chee, Philip Blenkinsop, Jane Merriman, Elaine Hardcastle, Jan Harvey Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Digital Services, DSA, Reuters, EU, EU Digital Services, Thomson Locations: Rights BRUSSELS, Israel

☆ EU officials warn TikTok over Israel-Hamas disinformation
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —EU officials warned TikTok Thursday about “illegal content and disinformation” on its platform linked to the war between Hamas and Israel, calling for CEO Shou Zi Chew to respond within 24 hours. In a letter to Chew, European Commissioner Thierry Breton said failure to comply with European Union laws around content moderation could result in penalties. It is the third such letter Breton has sent to large social media platforms this week, after he sent similar warnings to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, and Meta. In August, a recently passed EU law known as the Digital Services Act went into effect for large online platforms including the companies Breton addressed this week. Since the war began, Breton wrote, TikTok has reportedly spread graphic videos and misleading content on the platform.

Persons: Shou Zi Chew, Thierry Breton, Breton, TikTok, ” Breton, TikTok didn’t Organizations: CNN, Twitter, Meta, Digital Services Locations: Israel, Chew

The Utah suit is the latest action challenging the popular app in the United States, with Indiana and Arkansas bringing similar suits. Last month, a federal judge blocked California from enforcing a law meant to protect children when they use the Internet. Utah is seeking civil penalties as well as an injunction prohibiting TikTok from violating state law that protects consumers from deceptive business practices. Congress has been considering legislation for months that would enable the Biden administration to restrict or ban TikTok over concerns of potential spying. TikTok has said it has spent more than $1.5 billion on rigorous data security efforts and rejects spying allegations.

Persons: Shou Zi Chew, Online Harms, Sean Reyes, Reyes, TikTok, Biden, David Shepardson, Rod Nickel Organizations: Energy, Commerce, Safeguard, Online, Capitol, Facebook, Republican, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Utah, United States, Indiana, Arkansas, California, Montana's

The Utah suit is the latest action challenging the popular app in the United States and comes as Congress has been considering legislation for months that would enable the Biden administration to restrict or ban TikTok over concerns of potential spying. ByteDance-owned TikTok, which has more than 150 million U.S. users, denies it improperly uses U.S. data and did not immediately comment. Utah is seeking civil penalties as well as an injunction prohibiting TikTok from violating state law that protects consumers from deceptive business practices. The Utah lawsuit is similar to an action brought against TikTok by Indiana in December. Montana's legislature approved legislation to ban TikTok citing spying concerns.

Persons: Shou Zi Chew, Online Harms, Biden, Sean Reyes, Utah's, TikTok, David Shepardson, Rod Nickel Organizations: Energy, Commerce, Safeguard, Online, Capitol, TikTok, Facebook, Republican, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Utah, United States, Indiana, Arkansas, Montana's

☆ US senators examine TikTok hiring of ByteDance executives
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Oct 3 (Reuters) - Two U.S. senators said they were investigating short video sharing app TikTok's reported decision recently to hire several high-level executives from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance. Republican Senator Josh Hawley, who sought unanimously consent to win approval for legislation to ban TikTok in May, plans to force a vote on the issue later this year. "We need to come back to it and we need to ban it," he told Reuters last month. "(TikTok) has hired lobbyists by the bazillion, they are in the halls constantly and they have been able to stop progress." TikTok is fighting a ban by the state of Montana set to take effect on Jan. 1.

Persons: Richard Blumenthal, Republican Marsha Blackburn, Shou Zi Chew, TikTok, Maria Cantwell, Josh Hawley, Donald Trump, David Shepardson, Jonathan Oatis, Mark Porter, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: ByteDance, Democrat, Republican, U.S, Biden, White, TikTok, Reuters, HK, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: China, Montana

☆ Indonesia spoils TikTok’s Southeast Asia party
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-28 | by ( Anshuman Daga | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Sandy Saputra, 19, who is one of TikTok's biggest Indonesian stars, uses his smartphone to record a video using the app in Jakarta, Indonesia, July 24, 2020. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan - RC2PMI9KGQ5Q Acquire Licensing RightsSINGAPORE, Sept 28 (Reuters Breakingviews) - June must now feel like an alternate reality to TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew. On Wednesday, though, President Joko Widodo’s administration banned e-commerce transactions on social media platforms. Indonesia is key to TikTok’s hopes of growing its e-commerce sales in Southeast Asia. CONTEXT NEWSIndonesian authorities on Wednesday announced new regulations that bar social media companies from conducting direct e-commerce sales on their platforms.

Persons: Sandy Saputra, Willy Kurniawan, Shou Zi Chew, Joko, Zulkifli Hasan, TikTok, “, GoTo, Antony Currie, Katrina Hamlin Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Trade, HK, Wednesday, Thomson Locations: Indonesian, Jakarta, Indonesia, Rights SINGAPORE, Southeast Asia, Singapore

☆ Sea pivoted to growth over profits as it faced rising competition from TikTok, Lazada, analysts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-18 | by ( Sheila Chiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

But analysts said the pivot is a move to defend market share. Defending your market share is the right strategy in e-commerce. CEO Shou Zi Chew said in June that TikTok would invest billions of dollars in Southeast Asia over the next few years to gain market share. Sea's decision to accelerate ecommerce investments in growth is likely to materially weigh on its earnings and share price in the near-term. "Sea's decision to accelerate ecommerce investments in growth is likely to materially weigh on its earnings and share price in the near-term," said JPMorgan.

Persons: Forrest Li, GoTo, Sachin Mittal, Woo, Li, JPMorgan, Jonathan Woo, Shou Zi Chew, TikTok, Alibaba's Lazada, Sea's Shopee, Lazada's GMV Organizations: Sea Ltd, Bloomberg, Getty, Local, DBS Bank, Phillip Securities Research, JPMorgan, Momentum Works Locations: Singapore, Lazada, Southeast Asia

☆ Exclusive: TikTok in talks to gain Indonesian payments licence
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( Stefanno Sulaiman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A spokesperson for TikTok confirmed on Friday that the talks were taking place, adding that an Indonesian payments licence would help local creators and sellers on its platform. A representative for the central bank, Bank Indonesia, did not respond to a request for comment. A payments licence would enable TikTok to benefit from transaction fees and put it more directly in competition with Southeast Asian e-commerce giants, Sea's (SE.N) Shopee and Alibaba's (9988.HK) Lazada. Douyin, the Chinese counterpart to TikTok that is also owned by ByteDance, obtained a Chinese payments licence in 2020. It was not immediately clear if TikTok has obtained a payments license elsewhere in the world.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, TikTok, Shou Zi Chew, Stefanno Sulaiman, Josh Ye, Edwina Gibbs Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, TikTok, Bank Indonesia, HK, Lazada, ByteDance, Momentum, Thomson Locations: JAKARTA, Indonesia, U.S, Southeast Asia, Europe, TikTok, China, United States, Montana, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong

JAKARTA/HONG KONG, July 27 (Reuters) - TikTok said it has no plans to roll out a cross-border business in Indonesia as a government minister on Thursday expressed concerns over how reported plans for a new e-commerce push by the firm could flood the country with Chinese products. "We have no intent to create our own e-commerce product or become a retailer/wholesaler in Indonesia to compete with Indonesian sellers." The current localised TikTok Shop model "empowers and benefits" local sellers, and TikTok will continue with this approach, she added. The company said that its app has 325 million Southeast Asian users that are active every month while 125 million are in Indonesia. The company has said that there are 2 million small businesses on TikTok Shop in Indonesia.

Persons: TikTok, China's ByteDance, Masduki, Fiki, Temu, Anggini Setiawan, Shou Zi Chew, Stanley Widianto, Josh Ye, Brenda Goh, Conor Humphries Organizations: Reuters, Indonesia's, Cooperatives, Enterprises, PDD Holdings, U.S, of Communications, TikTok, Thomson Locations: JAKARTA, HONG KONG, Indonesia, United States, Indonesian, Europe, TikTok Indonesia, Asia, Jakarta, Hong Kong

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