Alexis Ohanian, co -founder of Reddit, confirmed his intention to participate in the acquisition of Tiktok American operations to transform them into a platform based on blockchain. This initiative is part of a context where the Chinese application risks a complete ban in the United States under the Trump administration.
Alexis Ohanian wants to acquire Tiktok Us
Alexis Ohanian formalized on March 3 on X (formerly Twitter) his participation in the acquisition project of Tiktok US. “” I am now officially one of the people trying to buy Tiktok US – and bring it to the channel “He said.
This approach is carried out in collaboration with Project Liberty, an initiative founded by Frank McCourt, where Ohanian will intervene as a strategic advisor specializing in social media.
The project is based on the use of “Frequency”, a decentralized social network protocol based on the Polkadot infrastructure. This blockchain technology would allow users and content creators to keep the property of their personal data and their audience. “” Users should own their data. The creators should also be owners of their audience. Final point “, Says Ohanian.
The ambition displayed by consortium goes beyond a simple acquisition. They plan to “ reorganize the platform to allow people to control their digital identities and data “, According to statements from McCourt. This vision reflects an increasing trend towards the decentralization of social networks in the face of concerns about data protection.
A race against the clock in a tense geopolitical context
Ohanian’s initiative occurs in a context where the Trump administration increases its pressure on Bytedance, accusing the company of massively collecting the data of American users on behalf of the Chinese government. American legislators have also adopted a law requiring the Chinese company to sell its American operations, failing which Tiktok would be prohibited in the American territory.
The race for acquisition attracts other weight contenders. Sources indicate that Bytedance would envisage Elon Musk as a potential buyer for an estimated transaction between 40 and 50 billion dollars. Paradoxically, the boss of X has publicly opposed the ban on the platform, invoking freedom of expression.
Ohanian is not a novice in blockchain. Under his direction, Reddit has invested in cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Ethereum, Polygon) and launched initiatives such as “Reddit Collectible Avatars », A collection of NFT based on polygon. Despite the abandonment of certain blockchain projects by Reddit at the end of 2023, Ohanian remains convinced of the potential of this technology to transform social networks.
In short, this showdown for Tiktok's control perfectly symbolizes the increasing geopolitical and technological tensions between Washington and Beijing. Whatever the outcome, this restructuring could deeply redefine the data ownership models and governance of social platforms on a global scale.
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