I write about creators, digital platforms and the $250B global industry around them. Recently I revealed how MrBeast and top creators are coming for TV’s ad dollars; interviewed Jake and Logan Paul’s EP Andrew Fried on Max’s Paul American; reported on Emma Chamberlain’s financial struggles with her coffee company. Email me tips and ideas at natalie@theankler.com
Today I’m bringing you two upside-down tales of the internet: my take on a possible TikTok ban, where the stakes seem very high but probably aren’t, and a report on a food blogger’s struggle to protect her IP, where the stakes seem low but represent a huge potential obstacle for every creator.
First, TikTok on the clock: The social media platform has just three more days to sell to a U.S. company or risk another ban. I haven’t been covering this story too closely since January — when TikTok briefly went dark in the U.S. — because, quite honestly, most of my sources just shrug when I bring it up. This time around, creators aren’t posting tearful videos or spilling all their secrets. President Trump has said a deal will come before April 5 and that he’ll be considering final proposals today — but he’s also indicated that he’ll extend the deadline if he needs to.
There’s no shortage of interested buyers. Today alone reports have surfaced that Amazon, AppLovin and the founder of OnlyFans are all separately interested in a deal. And while it doesn’t seem like the Trump administration is taking those offers very seriously, they show how last-minute the maneuvering for the future of the app has become.
Regardless, no one thinks TikTok is going anywhere (assuming parentco ByteDance and the Chinese government agree to a sale).
The only big question has been which of several groups of wealthy individuals will ultimately win the deal. In the last week, one proposal has risen above the rest to become the clear frontrunner: ByteDance’s existing U.S. investors. Led by Susquehanna International Group and General Atlantic, the group makes a lot of sense given they already have familiarity and trust with the company. Plus, this allows ByteDance to shrink the percentage of TikTok owned by foreign entities without a total sale of the app. Blackstone and Andreessen Horowitz are considering joining the bid, Reuters and the Financial Times reported last week, which includes a plan for Oracle to acquire a small stake and continue to host U.S. user data.
This is the proposal Trump is said to be weighing, and it’s the most straightforward deal. Here’s a quick recap of the other wannabe TikTok moguls:
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MrBeast: The top YouTuber (Jimmy Donaldson) teamed with entrepreneur Jesse Tinsley, Roblox CEO David Baszucki and Anchorage Digital CEO Nathan McCauley to secure a bid of more than $20 billion. On January 20 Donaldson posted to TikTok that he was on a private jet heading to make his official offer. “I might become your guys’ new CEO,” he said. “I wish I could say more about the offer I’m putting in but I can’t for now. Just know it’s gonna be crazy.” I’m not sure crazy is what anyone was looking for from the next owner of TikTok.
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Reid Rasner: The Wyoming-based CEO and founder of Omnivest Financial said he would bid more than $47 billion. On his website, FoundersTok.com — where he’s selling “Making TikTok American” and “Suck It China” merch (a hat will set you back between $20 and $33) — Rasner promised to pay creators to use the app, which he planned to operate out of a new Wyoming HQ. He also asked people to pledge support (i.e., become a “Founding Father” for $12,000 per year and score perks like beta testing access and invitations to exclusive events) and expressed interest in buying the platform and its powerful algorithm.
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The People’s Bid for TikTok: Former L.A. Dodgers owner Frank McCourt and Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary— with Alexis Ohanian as a strategic advisor — said they planned to redesign TikTok with a focus on privacy and security. Their $20 billion bid was on the low side but didn’t include buying the algorithm.
I’ll be keeping a close eye on it all through the weekend. And speaking of the weekend, if you’re in Vegas for NAB Show, drop by my panel, State of the Creator Economy, where the fate of TikTok is sure to be a hot topic. I’m also moderating a conversation Monday with Webtoon Entertainment COO David J. Lee and Wattpadd Webtoon Studios global entertainment head David Madden about webcomics, creators and the next frontier of IP, part of The Ankler’s Business of Entertainment track. Register here.
Now, onto that other digital dilemma: A couple of weeks ago, my Ankler colleague Ashley Cullins connected me to Claire Scott, a culinary creator who’s been fighting repeated Google takedowns of her original food photographs. What seemed at first like an understandable, albeit frustrating mixup, has become a much, much crazier story involving a wild saga where she has been confused with an OnlyFans star whose handle is similar to hers — and it could have a lasting impact on Scott’s ability to monetize her content and grow. Read on to learn about:
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How Scott is fighting back after Google delisted her photos from search
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Why it’s so difficult to protect your own creative work from takedowns, especially in the age of AI
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How some companies — set up to help creators protect their IP — can issue thousands of takedown requests daily
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The massive database documenting these takedown requests
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A Wall Street Journal investigation that found many such requests are “bogus”
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The impact on Scott’s income and traffic as she scrambles for recourse
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Why a solution is so elusive and what could happen next for creators like Scott
On the surface, food blogger Claire Scott doesn’t appear to have much in common with the fitness model Claire Stone— aside from sharing a first name. Scott, 38, is an Australian-born former actor and nanny who has build a modest but respectable following of 12,500 on Instagram under the name Claire Bear Bites with recipes for colorful and bright dishes like a Blue Hawaiian Smoothie and a “Hearty” Strawberry Cucumber Salad.
Stone, meanwhile, has 749,000 followers on Instagram, where the 24-year-old posts workout videos and bikini photos that show off her physique. And on OnlyFans, where she has more than 500,000 likes, she promises “spicy stuff” to people who pay up (her recent posts cost anywhere between $5 and $24 to unlock).
But an AI-powered platform seems to be having a hard time differentiating the photos Scott posts of “food that not only tastes amazing, it feeds your body and soul” (okay, some people might call that “food porn”) with Stone’s “bare views you’ve been begging me for.”
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