EU Regulators To Discuss Data Protection And Disinformation With TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew

In a significant development, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is scheduled to hold discussions with EU regulators next week. The meetings will focus on critical issues such as data protection, disinformation and competition regulations.

What Happened: As reported by Bloomberg, Chew, who heads TikTok, owned by ByteDance Ltd., will meet with representatives from the European Commission on Monday and Tuesday. 

Officials, including Vice President Vera Jourova, Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders, and Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton, are expected to be in attendance. 

This is the first such engagement since EU officials were barred from using TikTok on their work devices.

See Also: Trump’s Likely VP Pick, Nancy Mace, Wants Marijuana Legalized, Although She’s ‘Pretty Damn Conservative’

Project Clover, TikTok’s initiative for third-party supervision of Europeans’ personal data, will likely be a key discussion point. 

The meetings will also address the EU’s content moderation guidelines and concerns about disinformation ahead of the 2024 European Parliament elections. 

The EU’s competition rules will be on the table, too, particularly after ByteDance was identified as a “gatekeeper.”

Why It Matters: TikTok’s increasing popularity, especially among younger users, has been a cause for concern for tech giants like Google. Earlier this month, Google’s senior executive, Prabhakar Raghavan, voiced worries about losing users to TikTok.

On the other hand, TikTok topped the list of most downloaded apps globally in September 2023, demonstrating its strong appeal. However, its popularity has not been without controversy.

The app faced legal action in Utah, where it was accused of creating an “addictive” environment harmful to children and misleading about its ties to parent company ByteDance.

Last month, Utah’s governor, Spencer Cox, charged TikTok with “illegally baiting children into addictive and unhealthy use.”

The upcoming discussions with EU regulators indicate that TikTok’s data protection practices and content moderation policies are under the global spotlight.

Check out more of Benzinga’s Consumer Tech coverage by following this link.

Read Next: Analysts Predict Investors Poised For ‘Once-In-A-Generation’ Stock Market Opportunity: ‘We See Profits Taking Off’

Photo by XanderSt on Shutterstock