TikTok could be Walmart's ticket to young shoppers
29 August 2020
Walmart's efforts to join Microsoft on a TikTok acquisition could serve young shoppers to the retail giant on a silver platter.
The big picture: The Trump administration has been forcing a sale of TikTok due to ongoing national security concerns over ByteDance, it's Chinese owner. The app is most popular with young people who could be the future of Walmart's customer base, AP notes.
- Young people are more inclined to shop digitally, driving social media apps including TikTok and Instagram to build in-app shopping functions.
- TikTok could give Walmart a platform to promote its online products. The retailer could also get a cut of revenue from other dealers' in-app sales.
Between the lines: Digital shopping is up dramatically during COVID-19 due to social distancing. Walmart's online sales almost doubled last quarter due to a rise in online grocery shopping, AP adds.
- But Walmart’s online sales still pale in comparison to Amazon, who rules the e-commerce arena.
What to watch: TikTok will be banned from the U.S. if no acquisition is completed by Sept. 15.
- TikTok has sued the Trump administration to block the shutout.
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.