TikTok offer would keep Chinese firm on board

Export list a 'lever'

While the nature of an Oracle-TikTok partnership remains unclear, chances are great for Oracle to enter into a hosting deal and act as a "trusted supplier in storage", Shen added, meaning Oracle is less likely to take over significant operations from the US TikTok offices.

TikTok has denied allegations that the company collects personal data and poses a national security threat to the US. The company has said its data centers are located entirely outside of China and that none of that data is subject to Chinese law.

A potentially critical turning point is Beijing's newly revised catalog of technologies prohibited and restricted from export as of late August, which effectively imposed new restrictions on algorithm-backed services such as those provided by ByteDance, Shen said.

"The new rules have given Beijing a precise lever to raise concerns over technology transfer deals that could jeopardize major national interests, and therefore to back companies in safeguarding their lawful interests," he said.

While the case is far from being completed, given it hasn't obtained a green light from the White House, Shen said the process shows a company's insistence of its due rights is worth the effort.