If you haven't heard more than you could possibly care to hear about Tiktok already then here's one more thought for you to consider. There's a massive, global battle ongoing right now. An epic power struggle between governments. But consider the true ramifications behind this tug-of-war. This country-vs-country clash is not focused on the outcome of a single company, nor is this the struggle for additional tax revenues, or even GDP growth. No, the incredibly delicate, supremely powerful asset at the center of these negotiations is personal data.
Think about that for another second. We have countries fighting with countries over data ownership. And make no mistake, the battle you see over this TikTok data is incredibly important to the future of our world. Love/Hate/Don't care about TikTok or social media - that's fine, read this article briefly for context:
The real issue, the real question at hand may be only slightly obfuscated with all the surrounding noise, but if we think clearly about the big picture - this is government warfare over personal data ownership.
Interesting side thought: If governments believe this data is so important, then why do we as individuals give it to corporations so easily? FB and social media, LinkedIn, Microsoft Office, Google, Amazon.
We've relinquished our rights to these companies, this has happened slowly and methodically since the rise of the SaaS era. These corporations now own our personal data. But who owns these companies? The government seems to think they do. And apparently based on their actions - they can in fact control any company within their country. (Plus it doesn't hurt when the government buys stocks on the open market).
All this leads me to an observation. Whether we care about the future of a video-sharing dance app or not - this case represents much more. The future of data ownership, the value and privacy of personal data, and the government's involvement in any private company all hang in the balance. I'm watching closely and you should be too.
