As TikTok battles the impending ban in United States of American (USA) and tries to rid itself of the baggage of the bad image its native country China has earned, an European city has come forward with an invitation. Mayor of Frankfurt has invited ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok app, to set up its European headquarters in his city.
Earlier, there were reports that the company was seriously considering moving its head office to London. They have even received the clearance from the British government, according to a newspaper report. But now, the German town has come forward as a new contender through a letter written by the mayor to ByteDance administration.
Frankfurt's credentials
Mayor Peter Feldman has claimed that his city is "an ideal location for IT companies." He also described Frankfurt as the 'digital capital' of Europe and boasted about its centrality in the geography of the continent.
"Sure, the competition is tough, but Frankfurt has good starting conditions," the mayor told a German newspaper. The competition that Feldman refers to is caused by the enormous popularity of the TikTok app. It is already the most downloaded app in the world and has developed a massive fan following across the globe.
So far, there has been an encouraging response from TikTok's parent company. Their spokesperson said that the organization is "very pleased" to receive the offer from Frankfurt. However, deciding which city they want to set up their headquarters in is a difficult decision.
TikTok's difficulties
The problems for the app began when allegations of it letting the Chinese government use its database and access user information surfaced. With the Coronavirus pandemic worsening the image of China, TikTok's reputation also suffered damage. The first blow was struck by India after the country banned several Chinese apps, following a bloody altercation between soldiers on Sino-Indian border.
Then, President Donald Trump of USA, already very unhappy with the alleged mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic by China, decided to up the ante on his front by launching an offensive against TikTok. Raising the same charges of exploiting user data and letting it be accessed by the communist government, he signed an executive order the previous week, giving the company 45 days to change its ownership, otherwise suffering a ban.
