NYC's public Wi-Fi network nixes deal to bring TikTok to 'every street corner'

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1 year ago

April 8, 2024

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New York City’s public Wi-Fi network has nixed a controversial deal with Chinese-owned TikTok to bring the service to “every street corner” after a Post inquiry and as congressional scrutiny over the app rages.

The planned partnership between the tech firm Intersection and LinkNYC was designed to allow TikTok’s “Out of Phone” service — which expands its wildly popular cell video content to public displays everywhere from billboards to bars — to screens on city cell-phone poles and at its Wi-Fi kiosks.

But Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Ritichie Torres (D-Bronx) got wind of the plan and immediately demanded that Mayor Eric Adams scrap the deal, claiming it represented a national security threat, given the company’s ties to China.

Intersection then told The Post on Sunday that the TikTok deal has been iced after the outlet asked about it.

While this relationship never involved the collection or sharing of any data, Intersection has already paused the TikTok content partnership and is in the process of ending it due to recent developments at the federal level,” an Intersection rep said.

That’s a stark departure from what Intersection said when it announced the TikTok partnership in February, with a company representative crowing in a statement, “Our collaboration with TikTok takes their initiative to every street corner of NYC.”

The free public LinkNYC Wi-Fi program is currently provided under a city franchise agreement with a consortium called CityBridge that includes Intersection and Boldyn Networks.

After Intersection and TikTok inked their deal, Gottheimer and Torres learned of it — and cried foul to the city.

“We write to urge you to end the partnership between TikTok, LinkNYC, and Intersection,” the pols told the mayor in a draft letter obtained by The Post.

“This partnership presents a grave threat to national security by allowing the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to harvest Americans’ data from the largest city in the United States,” they said.

Gottheimer and Torres pointed out the House voted 352-65 last month to give TikToks Chinese owner, ByteDance, about six months to divest the US assets of the short-video app or face a ban. The Senate is considering similar legislation, although the move faces opposition from TikTok and many of its users.

New York City is the financial capital of the world and home to “troves of sensitive data and information” and 9 million residents, while China’s CCP is “willing to use cyberwarfare and surveillance tactics to breach U.S. institutions,” the House members told the mayor.

“This privacy disaster cannot continue: TikTok and the CCP cannot have any additional avenues to access Americans data,” Gottheimer and Torres said. “Although Congress has taken steps to mitigate these national security threats, New York Citys partnership remains a threat to national security and should be terminated immediately.”

The Federal Trade Commission in 2019 fined TikTok for knowingly collecting the names, email addresses, pictures and locations of children under the age of 13 without parental consent, the lawmakers said.

The social-media app in 2022 also agreed to a class-action settlement for harvesting US personal data from users without their consent and confirmed that China-based employees could gain remote access to Americans data, including public videos and comments, the Congress members told the mayor.

“Using TikTok, China has the ability to control what a generation of kids sees and consumes every single day,” the House reps said.

“We urge New York City to immediately reevaluate this contract with LinkNYC if it continues its
partnership with TikTok.”

The city Office of Technology and Innovation, responding to The Post for the Adams administration, washed its hands of the controversy Sunday, claiming it was not directly involved in the deal.

The City of New York recognizes the public health hazard and cybersecurity threat posed by TikTok and has undertaken significant legal and policy actions against both,” an OTI spokesman said.

In August, Adams cyber command unit banned TikTok from all government devices and ordered all city employees to delete the app from their work phones within 30 days out of fear of Chinese espionage.

“This administration does not have an advertising partnership with TikTok,” the OTI rep said. “As franchisee of the LinkNYC program, CityBridge is restricted from collecting personally identifiable information and from sharing that data with third parties. Advertising content appearing on any LinkNYC kiosk is not necessarily an endorsement by the City of New York.”

Sports

Sources: Rangers close to hiring Sullivan as coach

Published

2 hours ago

May 2, 2025

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Sources: Rangers close to hiring Sullivan as coach

May 1, 2025, 06:51 PM ET

The New York Rangers are in advanced contract talks to make former Pittsburgh Penguins coach Mike Sullivan their next head coach, sources told ESPN’s Emily Kaplan and Kevin Weekes on Thursday.

The deal is expected to be one of the richest coaching contracts in NHL history, the sources said.

Sullivan would head to New York in a move that is coming together three days after he left his job with Pittsburgh, where he coached for 10 seasons and won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017.

The Penguins have missed the playoffs for the past three seasons amid a retooling of the roster.

David Quinn, Sullivan’s top assistant in Pittsburgh, is not expected to join him in New York. Quinn will be a candidate for other head coaching vacancies, including Pittsburgh’s, according to sources.

John Tortorella is a strong possibility to rejoin the Rangers organization. Sullivan, Quinn and Tortorella were on the coaching staff for Team USA at Four Nations.

In New York, Sullivan would replace Peter Laviolette, who was fired after the Rangers didn’t make the postseason for the first time since 2021.

Sullivan was selected by the Rangers in the 1987 draft but never played for New York, choosing to stay in college at Boston University before going on to an 11-year NHL playing career with four teams.

Sullivan, 57, previously served as a Rangers assistant coach from 2009 to 2013 on Tortorella’s staff. He also was the head coach of the Boston Bruins for the 2003-04 and 2005-06 seasons.

Sports

Draisaitl, Hellebuyck, Kucherov are Hart finalists

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2 hours ago

May 2, 2025

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Draisaitl, Hellebuyck, Kucherov are Hart finalists

Field Level Media

May 1, 2025, 12:22 PM ET

Edmonton Oilers star forward Leon Draisaitl, Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck and Tampa Bay Lightning standout Nikita Kucherov were named finalists for the 2024-25 Hart Memorial Trophy on Thursday.

The award is presented “to the player adjudged to be the most valuable to his team” and voted on by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

Draisaitl, 29, led the NHL in goals (52), tied for third in points (106) and was a career-best plus-32 in 71 games this season. He won the award in 2019-20 and is a two-time finalist.

Hellebuyck, 31, led the league in wins (47), goals-against average (2.00) and shutouts (eight) and was second in save percentage (.925) among goalies to play at least 25 games. The Vezina Trophy finalist as the best goaltender in the NHL is a first-time Hart finalist.

Kucherov, 31, led the NHL in scoring for the second consecutive season with 121 points (37 goals, 84 assists). He won the Hart Trophy in 2018-19 and is a three-time finalist.

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Injured Scheifele won’t travel with Jets for G6

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2 hours ago

May 2, 2025

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Injured Scheifele won't travel with Jets for G6

Ryan S. ClarkMay 1, 2025, 01:54 PM ET
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Winnipeg Jets coach Scott Arniel said Thursday that star center Mark Scheifele will not travel with team ahead of Game 6 against the St. Louis Blues.

Scheifele will remain in Winnipeg after he missed the second and third periods of his team’s 5-3 victory Wednesday against the Blues in Game 5 of the Western Conference quarterfinals.

“You’re hoping for the best that maybe he wakes up today and things are better,” Arniel told reporters before the team flight to St. Louis. “But right now, he won’t be making the trip, and we’ll just go day-to-day moving forward.”

With 13:51 remaining in the opening period, the Jets were in the Blues’ zone when Scheifele had just played the puck along the half wall. That’s when he was instantly checked by Blues captain Brayden Schenn. Scheifele appeared to be concentrating on the puck and looked as if he did not see Schenn, who connected with the top half of Scheifele’s chest and knocked him down to the ice.

Schenn was given a two-minute minor for interference and another two-minute minor for roughing.

A little more than 10 minutes later, Scheifele was involved in another physical sequence. He was just about to reach the Blues’ zone when forward Radek Faksa also checked him and appeared to have struck Scheifele in the same area as the previous hit from Schenn.

Scheifele finished the first period, but Arniel spoke to the officials as both teams were entering the dressing room before first intermission. Blues coach Jim Montgomery confirmed with reporters after the game that Arniel spoke to the officials about the Schenn hit before sharing his thoughts.

“Let’s make it clear: Fifty-five got hurt from the Faksa hit,” Montgomery said. “He played six minutes after the Schenn hit. He didn’t come back after he got rocked by Faksa.”

Upon hearing Montgomery’s comments, Arniel had some thoughts of his own.

“I didn’t know Monty got his medical degree and can say how our player got hurt. He’s way off base and should not make that comment,” Arniel told reporters. “There’s some things that have been going on in this series and that was a repeat of what we’ve seen before: A player leaving his feet and then hitting a player in a very unprotected spot. Like hitting him in the sense, almost blindsiding him. Not happy with how the call was made. A two-minute minor. Not even looking at it is what I was upset about.

“It is something we have talked to the league about for five games.”

On Thursday, Arniel was asked if Scheifele was in concussion protocol.

“I’m not going down that road,” Arniel said.

It’s possible that the Jets could once again turn to Vladislav Namestnikov like they did in Game 5 and elevate him to the top line. The second-line center would take Scheifele’s place on the first line alongside Kyle Connor and Gabriel Vilardi.

Namestnikov, who had 11 goals and 38 points in 78 regular-season games, had his strongest game of the postseason in Game 5. He finished with a goal and two points while logging 17:15 of ice time.