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BBC News - TikTok's UK headquarters in doubt amid US pressure https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-53462918 I'm no lover of the ccp. But this is really incredible hypocrisy. This is coming from the two governments who collect massive amounts of data on their own citizens as revealed by Edward Snowden. Reportedly to find terrorists. They would love to tap the entire world except that Apple the main handphone used by most Americans refuse to comply with many of their information requests. And Canada, USA, England are tapping all communication cables on both sides of the Atlantic.... And the silly thing is that you can choose not to use wechat, tiktok or huawei phones...

Yes, yes, I'm about four months late to this trend and you'll need to excuse me as I don't lurk about on TikTok. But just as the Roman General Fabius clenched victory in the Punic Wars against Carthage by constantly biding for time, perhaps this blog post can also benefit from a bit of added time and hindsight. If you're a geriatric old fart like me, you might not have heard about this as well - but apparently girlfriends/wives around the world were finding out in the last months that their partners think about the Roman Empire a lot more frequently than they would have otherwise guessed. Here’s a short compilation of some more viral clips that emerged on TikTok: I've got to admit, even as an ardent consumer of the classic works in my university days, I don't think about the Romans anywhere as much as the guys in some of the clips do. But it really is not hard to see why, or how it keeps reappearing in our thoughts. I mean, for all the motorists here, there's even a proverb that goes "All roads lead to Rome", which, apparently is even applies even to the way the minds of men everywhere are wired. And of course, seeing the influence of the Romans everywhere comes as just one of the repercussions of living in a society that has been touched by the Western World. You would have seen Roman numerals if you're even remotely into the Super Bowl. And the manner in which our democratic governments are organised is a product of the organisation of the early Roman Republic. Apparently this scenario has been playing out in bedrooms everywhere but we just never knew it I think many of you will remember all the talk that emerged around the formation of an 'Auto Czar' in the U.S.A, a task force that would deal with the financial bailout of Chrysler and General Motors in 2009. The term czar, of course, traces its origins to the Roman title Cesear. There's clearly something very interesting about how differently men and women operate being revealed here, you know, like as if some of us are from Mars and the rest are from Venus. But I want to ride on this trend and point out something else altogether. Even the greatest empires can fall, and it would be wise if we looked back once in a while to avoid their mistakes I get that it isn't fun to read bad news, but my take is that the world is slowly becoming a more dangerous place. The political fault lines that have emerged in recent years (think about Russia's attempt to annex Ukraine, and the perpetuation of the Palestine-Isreali conflict) seem to suggest that Huntington vision of a world increasingly split along cultural divides was right all along. The U.S.A is dealing with increasing political polarisation and instability, and even locally, our leaders can no longer be assumed to be above corruptibility. The Romans too were famously distracted from the political decay that was happening in their era by bread and circuses, and I can't help but feel like YouTube and TikTok are essentially the same sources of superficial appeasement of our own time. Hopefully future generations won't be surprised to find that their husbands constantly think about the collapse of Western democracy. Perhaps the pessimist in me is just becoming more vocal here. But let's not get too absorbed in the next TikTok trend so that we get distracted from staying informed with what's going on in the world around us. And maybe in the future I'll have a better shot at riding on the next viral trend. - Clarence Images courtesy of Reddit and Imgflip

I'd argue the best TikTok accounts are the ones that deliver enough predictability (and quality) so that you know exactly what you’re getting into when you click on the account handle. At the same time, they hold enough suspense - such that followers are kept on their toes about what might come next. That's the basic formula, really. (Before we proceed, let's first acknowledge the reality: Data privacy, and the long-term psychological effects of prolonged social media use are arenas that a single thesis (much less blog post) will not sufficiently cover. Alright - onwards we go, keeping that caveat at the back of our minds and focusing on the more idyllic and innocuous parts of TikTok.) It doesn’t matter what you're selling too. It's safe to say that virality and attention, centred on good humour, are strong enough pieces of evidence that a specific creator has been doing something right. Case in point: Subway Indonesia. Don't expect such shots on Subway Indonesia's TikTok page. Challenge yourself to consider what might fill the rows of its TikTok profile. You're probably thinking of the most gorgeous supercuts of the sandwich-maker's menu - the greenest, leafiest bits of wet lettuce falling in slow motion; a shiny knife and succulent slices of chicken breast; and of course, a blend of vibrant colours - red, orange, yellow - for the sauces (note of apology: I've not had a Subway sandwich in a while, not in Singapore at least. Please excuse me if I’ve gotten the sauce flavours wrong.) And let's not forget the final shot: A young, attractive couple savouring each bite of their BLT, seated in a living room straight out of an IKEA showroom. Add on lots of satisfied sounds - "mmm", "yum" and the like - big bites, and some overused one-liner about freshness. Wrong. Subway Indonesia is a dance cover account. It's not just any dance cover account, by the way, but one that has close to 182,000 followers (and counting), and more than 7.8 million likes across its videos. A good number of them even have more than two million views. In terms of the viewing experience, the dance covers here rarely differ. At least officially, there are only two stars to expect: One female mascot, and one male mascot, almost always one or the other. (The pair does appear together, but far less frequently.) But what exactly makes them so fun and unique to watch? In my extremely professional view as a dance cover connoisseur (I count at least 10,000 hours of viewership of Kyle Hanagami's, 1MILLION Dance Studio's, and Tim Milgram's channels each among my credentials), there are a few possible reasons why. Firstly: The dancers are legitimately good. I’ve always been slightly peeved when I hear people brush off TikTok as a wasteland full of people who can only lay claim to being conventionally attractive, because I do think a lot of talent makes its way onto the platform. I consider the stars of Subway Indonesia's account among that crew. The people donning these getups are genuine professionals, who have definitely honed dancing as a craft (or are just insanely talented by nature - it's usually a mix of both). Number two: The sheer sense of absurdity of seeing some not-too-easy choreography executed by the mascots. Two metrics often used by dancers (or so I’ve observed at least, again, very professionally) are energy and smoothness. Smoothness refers to the fluidity of movement, while energy refers, well, the explosiveness and amount of travel given to each step. The mascots here perform with 150% energy. And ostensibly, they very intentionally do so for yet another two reasons: Comedic effect, perhaps, but also because it's likely the only possible manner given the weight of all the gear. This goes to the extent that bits of the costume often fall off before the choreography is completed. A good example is the dance breakdown towards the end chorus of Standing Next To You by Jungkook. By the 27-second mark, both the mascot's cap and right shoe have flown off. Number three: Camerawork. This one's straightforward. The frame is often still in many dance covers; the videos on Subway Indonesia's account are more dynamic, following the beat of the track and movements from the choreography. Cue "Praise the cameraman!!!" And finally, the sort of.. expectation-related whiplash that arises when you realise that a multi-million dollar fast food franchise has effectively assimilated itself into TikTok dance culture (I’m not sure if I’m explaining this well enough). Yes, and...? I expect some will read this with furrowed eyebrows and looks of disapproval, sigh, then dismiss it all as having no value - on the basis of it bearing zero link to Subway's business of sandwich-selling. The latter might be true - and I don't have any stats to talk about how this has helped Subway Indonesia's sales. But I do know that most businesses thrive on brand awareness. Marketing can take on very different forms, with the best sorts neither forced down people’s throats, nor catered to feed everyone’s interests. Interestingly, scroll further down Subway Indonesia's profile and what appear to be pristinely-shot ads with models (or are they celebrities?) haven't enjoyed the same level of love. As a final rejoinder to the naysayers, appealing to a younger audience, while unintuitive, can be smart; don't forget these are the ones who will soon have their own money to spend. Cultivating love for a business, when done pseudo-organically, can certainly go a long way. Anyhow, before I get lost in a topic I have insufficient knowledge about, let's get back on the track - this is TikTok, and the shoe Subway Indonesia has chosen clearly fits. I may not be craving a sandwich the next time I visit Indonesia, but regardless, I have a weird inkling I’ll be on the lookout for green and yellow signs - and larger-than-life mascots giving it their all. - Matt Photos by Unsplash.com

To protect the consumer or business owner (and government coffer)? I hope Singapore and other countries will no follow suit. I cannot imagine how much more we need to pay for the same items without competition online (e-commerce and sales via social media). As consumer, we have to exercise due diligences when making purchase online, instead of relying on our givernment to protect us from being scammed. Source: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/indonesia-ban-sale-goods-tiktok-shop-social-media-regulation-commerce-3802491 SINGAPORE: For the past two months, factory worker Subairi has come to rely on TikTok Shop to purchase his daily necessities. From baby formula to cooking oil, he stocks up on these items each payday. But with the announcement that the Indonesian government has banned the direct sales of goods on social media platforms, Mr Subairi - who like many Indonesians go by one name - is worried over the loss of a cheaper shopping alternative. “If TikTok Shop is banned, I will find it difficult to find items that are as cheap as (those sold there),” the 38-year-old from Karawang, West Java told CNA. “On other e-commerce platforms, the service fee is almost 10,000 rupiah (US$0.64) but on TikTok Shop it is totally free, with no conditions.” Mr Subairi added that the flash sales and payday promotions - normally offered at the end of the month when workers receive their salaries - on TikTok Shop make the prices much cheaper. He has been comparing prices of goods across various e-commerce platforms, and found those sold on TikTok Shop to be the cheapest. “Yesterday, I bought baby formula. Elsewhere, the cheapest price was 320,000 rupiah but on TikTok, with various discounts, I could get (the formula at) around 300,000 rupiah,” said the father of two. Meanwhile, TikTok Shop buyer Nadya Aulia Arma told CNA that while she disagrees with the new regulation, she will accept the development and switch to using other e-commerce platforms. “I honestly don't agree, because I will lose a place to buy things at low prices. But if it's for the good of the Indonesian people, that's okay. I'll go back to shopping on Shopee,” she said. On Monday (Sep 25), the Indonesian government announced that it will no longer allow social media platforms to double as e-commerce sites, in order to prevent the misuse of data. "(Social media) can only (be used to) facilitate the promotion of goods or services (but) direct transactions … (and) direct payments are no longer allowed; (social media) can only be used for promotion," said Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan after a closed meeting on electronic commerce issues. Under the Revised Ministry of Trade Regulation, a minimum import transaction of US$100 will also be imposed on goods purchased from abroad. While the ban has caught the disappointment of buyers, some sellers at physical stores in Indonesia have celebrated the move. Textile seller Iyal Suryadi told CNA that the sale of goods online has reduced his income. “In the local market where we sell our goods, sometimes we only sell one or two pieces of cloth in a week … If it continues like this, don’t even think about growing (the business); just being able to survive is good,” he said. He added that the prices of items sold on TikTok Shop “do not make sense”. “They sell goods at factory prices directly to consumers, not to distributors or resellers. It is true that we have entered the free market, but let's not go too far. “The government must act if it does not want the country's economy to be destroyed. The reason is that the money in this country revolves around the small people like us, not the rich,” said Mr Suryadi, who owns a shop at Pasar Cipeundeuy located in Subang, West Java. Similarly, Mr Raden, a seller at Tanah Abang market in Jakarta, agreed that TikTok Shop has hurt his sales due to the cheap prices offered on the social media platform. However, he told CNA that he disagrees with the new ban and suggested that the sale of items through social media be restricted instead. “(This is) because there are merchants here who also sell through TikTok. They are forced to sell on TikTok because the physical market is starting to be abandoned by buyers,” said Mr Raden, who goes by one name. “In my opinion, TikTok shops should not be banned but restricted. (Instead), foreign products should be stopped and domestic products should be sold.” In response to the ban, TikTok Indonesia said that it will abide by the laws and regulations of the country. "However, we also hope that the government will consider the effect (of the ban) toward the livelihood of six million local sellers and around seven million creator affiliates that use TikTok Shop," a TikTok Indonesia spokesperson was quoted as saying by Tempo on Tuesday. The platform, owned by China's ByteDance, reportedly said that it has received complaints from local sellers and has asked for certainty from the authorities regarding the newly issued regulation. According to Tempo, TikTok said that social commerce emerged as a solution to the problems faced by micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), adding that it believes that TikTok Shop was established to support local sellers to collaborate with local creators in order to boost traffic for their online shops. TikTok has been hit with allegations that its TikTok Shop service is implementing predatory pricing by selling imported goods at significantly lower prices, thus leading to major profit losses for MSMEs who struggle to compete with such prices. Mr Dedi Dinarto, lead Indonesia analyst at public policy advisory firm Global Counsel, told CNA that Indonesia is the first Southeast Asian country to implement regulations prohibiting social media companies from simultaneously operating as e-commerce platforms. “TikTok is expected to be the most affected, as TikTok Shop currently allows Indonesian buyers to make direct purchases within the app, whereas platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp lack built-in transaction features,” he said. However, he noted that small vendors who have benefited from TikTok Shop can still use any social media platforms to advertise their products, even though transactions will now need to be arranged separately between buyers and sellers. “Engaging in transactions outside of the apps may be considered risky, and this will place established e-commerce platforms such as Shopee, Lazada, and Tokopedia as more trusted options for online purchases,” said Mr Dinarto. Meanwhile, speaking to CNA, Jakarta-based economist Bhima Yudhistira from the Center of Economic and Law Studies (CELIOS) said that banning social commerce is just a partial step to help SMEs. “The government also needs to monitor illegal imports through airplane passengers - such as through a service known as Jastip - and also support SMEs by lowering lending rates, increasing domestic purchasing power, and government procurement absorption of SME products,” said Mr Yudhistira. Jastip allows buyers to obtain items available overseas by contracting the services of travellers who can buy and deliver the goods in their travels.

You might disagree with her, but you’ll be hard pressed to find much evidence against her case. What happened? Content creator and entrepreneur Wendi Chan, better known as @pinkkittywendi has been stirring the pot by making the bold but likely true statement that Singaporeans are the worst drivers and/or the most inconsiderate drivers in the world. If you are angered at the above statement, I present to you all our existing articles. And SGRV. She uses the example of how when trying to enter another lane in the event that someone has stopped in front of you, Singaporean drivers are more likely to speed up and close the gap instead of graciously letting you in. To support this, she mentions how in other countries there is no such behaviour, that it is "common courtesy" to let the person signalling come into the lane. Wendi also gave her own experience of another driver giving a “very rude sign” when she attempted to turn into the lane. No further elaboration on the sign but I’m sure we can all guess what it was. She ends off the video with her confusion on this behaviour, “I just don’t get it, what is that five seconds you can lose coming in and probably going out again because there was a vehicle stuck there? It’s just frustrating.” Online chatter Almost unanimous agreement. But as always, there are outliers. What do you think about Singaporean drivers? ========= Be the first to get the latest road/ COE news and get first dibs on exclusive promos and giveaways in our Telegram SGCM Community. Join us today!

BEIJING (BLOOMBERG) - ByteDance, the Chinese owner of video-sharing app TikTok, is planning to make Singapore its beachhead for the rest of Asia as part of its global expansion, according to people familiar with the matter. The Beijing-based company is looking to spend several billion dollars and add hundreds of jobs over the next three years in the city-state, where it has applied for a licence to operate a digital bank, said the sources, who asked not to be identified because of confidentiality. The investment would come at a crucial time as the technology firm is forced to sell its TikTok operations in the United States under pressure by the Trump administration. ByteDance, the world's most richly valued start-up, is ploughing ahead with plans to take its social media services deeper into Asia after setbacks in India and Britain, as well as the US. The Internet phenomenon controlled by billionaire Zhang Yiming has long eyed South-east Asia's 650 million increasingly smartphone-savvy population, a region where Alibaba Group Holding and Tencent Holdings are also making inroads. The plans for Singapore include establishment of a data centre, the people said. Its operations there include TikTok and Lark, an enterprise software business. ByteDance currently has more than 200 job openings in Singapore, for positions in everything from payments to e-commerce and data privacy, according to its job referral site. The company already has 400 employees working on technology, sales and marketing in the city-state, one of the people said. A ByteDance representative offered no comment. US DEADLINE In China, ByteDance also runs news aggregation app Toutiao, and TikTok's Chinese twin Douyin. Collectively, its stable of products has more than 1.5 billion monthly active users. ByteDance is said to have generated over US$3 billion (S$4.1 billion) of net profit on more than US$17 billion of revenue in 2019. Asia is a growth area for the company, especially when it is increasingly likely to miss the US government's deadline for the sale of its TikTok US operations. President Donald Trump said on Thursday (Sept 10) that he will not extend his Sept 15 deadline for the deal. In India, TikTok is among more than a hundred Chinese-made consumer apps that are banned by the government on concerns about security. SoftBank Group is exploring gathering a group of bidders for TikTok's India assets. The British government will likely ban TikTok from moving local user data out of the country, Bloomberg News has reported. ByteDance is leading a consortium that has applied for a digital-bank licence from the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Other members of that group include a private investment firm owned by a member of the Lee family that founded OCBC Bank. The regulator will award as many as five such permits to non-banks by December. Ant Group and Tencent-backed Sea have also applied.

In all honesty, I can see where she’s coming from. Just look at our articles. What happened? Singaporean influencer and Tiktoker Nicole Chang Min put out a scorching hot take about our local drivers on a Tiktok that has since garnered over 94,000 views. The Tiktok opens with Nicole exclaiming that Singaporean drivers “sux” , saying that when she signals she is going to change lane, they often speed up to prevent her overtaking. (sorry for the play button guys, icon won’t disappear no matter what) She proceeds to ask why drivers must always “zham” on the gas and overtake her, as if letting her overtake will result in their deaths. Online chatter Public opinion is split depending on where you came across this video. Tiktok is surprisingly sympathetic, with others coming with their agreements. However, Facebook users suspect it being Nicole’s own fault for not being a good enough driver (basically skill issue but even less polite), or the other sort of stereotype about a specific sort of driver… Writer’s thoughts - Probably not her fault, our other articles should serve as adequate evidence. ========= Be the first to get the latest road/ COE news and get first dibs on exclusive promos and giveaways in our Telegram SGCM Community. Join us today!

TL;DR - Famous Tiktoker gets advice from Lalamove driver on how to own a GTR - and this is exactly why you should never look down on any blue collar workers, especially Lalamove drivers. Sign me up for Lalamove now! Watch this Tiktok to hear some words of wisdom from the man himself. What happened? There’s a pretty famous Tiktoker (@Koocester) who goes around Singapore interviewing drivers who drive exotic/luxurious cars and ask these drivers for their professions. And throw in some words of financial advice too. In the Tiktok, he managed to get some insights into the life of this Nissan GTR driver. The driver seemed to be rather friendly and shared some of his thoughts with Koocester. He mentioned things like saving often, donating and giving to those in need, and basically being wise when spending your money. Which is quite a no-brainer but most people need to be constantly reminded of such and coming from someone who owns an arguably, $600k GTR, better heed his advice! As dope as it looks, the video received mixed reactions from netizens - racial stereotypes (c’mon we’re living in 2023!) and possibly from the saltiness of them not being able to afford one. Online Chatter Instead of celebrating his W, netizens were making a fool out of the man - L behavior… Like, seriously… There’s more… & more… This wasn’t even the last of it. Many of the comments were also targeting his English, as he said “save often(ly)”. Hmm, what's bad English if he can afford such a sick car though… I don’t care that others say, when I grow up I wanna be like this guy! ========= Be the first to get the latest road/ COE news and get first dibs on exclusive promos and giveaways in our Telegram SGCM Community. Join us today!

SINGAPORE - Mr Adam Syah, whose renditions of pop tunes on a community piano posted on TikTok have caught the public’s attention, is a self-taught player who has never owned the musical instrument. The 21-year-old student and part-time GrabFood delivery rider said he started playing around with the piano when he was in secondary school as there was one in the foyer that was made available to students. He said in an interview with The Straits Times: “Since the piano was not really used by anyone else, I had a chance to play almost every day during recess, so I could practise whichever song I was trying to learn at the time. “I would watch YouTube to learn the basic chords in a song and then figure out the melody myself.” Prior to his sessions at the community piano at Block 107 Yishun Ring Road, he had not touched a piano in at least a year, he said. He had come across the piano while he was out delivering food. “I went to send the food to the customer first, as I did not want it to get cold, and then on my way down I decided to just stop and try playing a song,” said Mr Adam, who is pursuing a diploma in fine arts at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts. His first TikTok video taken at the community piano and posted on Dec 24 – of him playing the tune Rather Be by British electronic group Clean Bandit – has chalked up over 160,000 views and more than 22,000 likes. A subsequent video, in which he played the melody from Ed Sheeran’s hit Shape Of You, has garnered nearly 80,000 views and over 7,000 likes. The response has been a nice surprise, he said. Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam is one of those who have commented about Mr Adam’s performances. He said in a Facebook post: “Something truly joyful about this. The undiscovered, free-spirited talent. The beauty of spontaneous jamming.” The attention Mr Adam has drawn comes after a video showing the musical talent of two cleaners at the Pandan Valley condominium estate drew many views and likes in August. The two men had chanced upon a discarded piano while taking shelter from the rain at a bin centre there. Mr Sumali Sakarwi, 64, played the piano while his colleague Rosli Samat, 49, sang in their rendition of Ku Di Halaman Rindu, a hit by Malaysian rock band Lefthanded. Mr Adam said that while he has received many comments from people encouraging him to pursue music as a full-time career, he wants to just focus on finishing his diploma studies in the next six months and enlisting for national service. He said: “I enjoy playing the piano and also my other hobbies such as playing the guitar, skateboarding and BMX riding, but for me, these activities are a way to escape and de-stress, so I would rather not turn it into a career.” His tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@morrdecai

Cheers to Mr. Jonathan for going viral Cheers to your dream come true Cheers to the start of your new career as a TikToker Cheers for making a fool of yourself in a series of 5 videos Cheers to Cheers Singapore for not defending Mr TikToker Jonathan. On a side note, I scrolled through his TikTok account and found many SPF-related videos, most of which portraying SPF in a negative light. It's no surprise he jumped on the occasion to create a scene with our police force when the opportunity arose. Looks to be anti-Singapore Police Force/Anti-Government/PAP lol. For your midweek entertainment. Cheers to the first joker of 2023!

There's this product that's been going viral on TikTok called The Flik, which is this hilarious remote-controlled neon sign that you can attach to the back of your car. You can either thank people when they're being considerate on the road. . . or flip them off when they're not. 🤣 Since it's controlled by a remote, I've seen videos of drivers attaching the remote near their steering wheel so that they can easily flip the sign on when they need to. I personally think this is pretty funny to have but it might not be super practical in Singapore (especially with road-raging uncles and aunties). It could be the next best thing to solve road rage since people can just signal their feelings now instead of getting out of the car and physically fighting others. What do you think? Is this a better alternative to road rage or would it actually backfire and lead to worse fights? 😅

Stupidity has no cure. Performing dangerous act and getting charge in court just for a min of "frame" in the virtual world, worth it meh? https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/19-year-old-to-be-charged-with-criminal-trespass-into-singapore-zoo-enclosure SINGAPORE - The police will be charging a 19-year-old with criminal trespass into a rhino enclosure at the Singapore Zoo. In a statement on Sunday (July 11), the police said they were informed by the zoo that he allegedly trespassed into an enclosure and performed a backflip stunt on Dec 17 last year at about 5.40pm. Preliminary investigations revealed that his 18-year-old female companion purportedly filmed him doing the stunt before he posted the video on his TikTok account. On July 8, the police issued her a stern warning for abetting criminal trespass, following investigations and consultation with the Attorney-General's Chambers. He will be charged in court on July 12, under Section 447 of the Penal Code. Criminal trespass offences carry an imprisonment term of up to three months, a fine of up to $1,500, or both.