President Trump’s Tencent ban will not affect Fortnite, League of Legends, or other games. Fans of Riot Games, Epic Games, and similar giant franchises can breathe easily. When the order to ban both WeChat and TikTok came down, gamers across social media flipped out because the wording of the EO made it seem like some of the biggest game companies on Earth could be affected. Well, Sam August Dean of the Los Angeles Times cleared the air for the panicking public on Twitter. His post clarifies the murky wording of the document as people from all over feared the worst. For TikTok fans, the ban doesn’t go into effect for 45 days. If Microsoft can complete their acquisition of the U.S. branch of the service, then there will be hope to avoid any further drama.
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Trump’s written statement said TikTok’s “data collection threatens to allow the Chinese Communist Party access to Americans’ personal and proprietary information — potentially allowing China to track the locations of Federal employees and contractors, build dossiers of personal information for blackmail, and conduct corporate espionage.”
Video game companies owned by Tencent will NOT be affected by this executive order!
White House official confirmed to the LA Times that the EO only blocks transactions related to WeChat
So Riot Games (League of Legends), Epic Games (Fortnite), et al are safe
(pending updates)
— Sam Dean 🦅 (@SamAugustDean) August 7, 2020
The app’s U.S. General Manager Vanessa Pappas responded to the initial rumors of a ban on Saturday morning.
“I want to say thank you to the millions of Americans who use TikTok every day. Bringing their creativity and joy into our daily lives. We’ve heard your outpouring of support and we want to say thank you, and we’re not planning on going anywhere,” Pappas said then. “TikTok is a home for creators and artists to express themselves, create ideas, and connect with individuals across different backgrounds. We are so proud of the various communities that call TikTok their home. I’m also proud of our 1,500 U.S. employees that work on this app every day. The additional 10,000 jobs that we’re bringing into this country over the next three years.”
She added, “I’m thrilled about our U.S. Creator Fund, where we just announced our $1 billion fund to support our creators. When it comes to safety and security, we’re building the safest app because we know it’s the right thing to do. So, we appreciate the support. We’re here for the long run. Continue to share your voice here and let’s stand for TikTok.”
Did this clear up the Tencent confusion? Let us know down in the comments!
