ByteDance confirmed it is in discussions with the US authorities about plans to maintain TikTok operating within the US, shortly after President Donald Trump prolonged a deadline for the Chinese language firm to divest the app’s American operations.
In a assertion, the corporate mentioned Friday that key issues nonetheless have to be resolved and that any settlement would have to be authorized beneath Chinese language legislation. Underneath the extension introduced by Trump, ByteDance has a further 75 days to achieve a deal that may promote TikTok’s US enterprise to an American purchaser and keep away from a ban that had been set to take impact as quickly as this weekend.
“My Administration has been working very laborious on a Deal to SAVE TIKTOK, and we have now made large progress. The Deal requires extra work to make sure all obligatory approvals are signed, which is why I’m signing an Govt Order to maintain TikTok up and operating for a further 75 days,” the president mentioned in a submit on his Fact Social platform.
Underneath a legislation signed final 12 months by President Joe Biden, ByteDance was required to divest TikTok’s US unit by January 19, however the firm has balked at promoting a profitable enterprise, which has been valued from $20 billion (roughly Rs.1,71,658 crore) to as excessive as $150 billion (roughly Rs. 1287,438 crore) relying on the proposed phrases and know-how included.
Trump’s order marks the second reprieve he is granted to purchase time for a deal to maintain the app operating within the US. The newest extension, nonetheless, goes past the bounds of the divest-or-ban legislation, which allows the president to present a “one-time extension of no more than 90 days.”
To assist safe a deal, Trump has tapped a handful of senior administration officers to assist vet potential patrons, placing the portfolio within the fingers of Vice President JD Vance in addition to Nationwide Safety Advisor Mike Waltz.
Trump and different prime officers reviewed a proposal on Wednesday from a consortium of US buyers together with Oracle Corp., Blackstone Inc. and enterprise capital agency Andreessen Horowitz that had emerged as a prime contender to purchase TikTok, in accordance with two individuals acquainted with the assembly.
Underneath the potential association, new exterior buyers would personal 50 p.c of TikTok’s US enterprise in a unit that may be spun off from ByteDance, in accordance with sources acquainted with the planning. ByteDance’s present US buyers would additionally personal about 30% of the enterprise, reducing ByteDance’s stake to only under 20 p.c, permitting it to satisfy the possession necessities of the US safety legislation.
The proposal envisions Oracle taking a minority stake in TikTok’s US operations and offering safety assurances for person knowledge. Underneath that plan, the app’s influential algorithm would stay with ByteDance, eradicating a possible impediment to profitable approval from the corporate and Chinese language authorities.
On Friday, Trump reiterated his want for China to assist negotiate a sale, once more suggesting that the US may present tariff aid in change for Beijing’s approval.
“We hope to proceed working in Good Religion with China, who I perceive are usually not very comfortable about our Reciprocal Tariffs (Obligatory for Honest and Balanced Commerce between China and the usA.!),” Trump mentioned in his submit. “This proves that Tariffs are probably the most highly effective Financial instrument, and essential to our Nationwide Safety! We don’t want TikTok to ‘go darkish.’ We stay up for working with TikTok and China to shut the Deal.”
Critics of the proposal, although, argue that leaving the algorithm in Chinese language fingers would fail to adjust to the divest-or-ban legislation and doubtlessly permit China to entry person info by way of a backdoor. Permitting ByteDance or China to maintain the algorithm would do little to squash considerations that TikTok might be used to unfold propaganda — claims that ByteDance and officers in Beijing have beforehand rejected.
Trump’s assist for TikTok marks a turnabout from his first time period in workplace, when he sought unsuccessfully to ban the app in 2020 over nationwide safety considerations. Throughout his comeback bid for the White Home final 12 months, he embraced the app as a option to attain youthful voters and mentioned it helped seal his win within the November election.
In 2020, Oracle was Trump’s authentic alternative to purchase TikTok from ByteDance as a part of a consortium that additionally included Walmart Inc. That deal fell aside within the last months of his first time period amid authorized challenges by ByteDance and the widening Covid-19 pandemic.
This week, Amazon.com Inc. entered the operating with a submitted bid to the White Home by way of a letter to Vance and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, in accordance with an individual acquainted with the matter. That proposal, nonetheless, has not been taken as significantly by the administration, in accordance with the individual, who mentioned the method on situation of anonymity.
Different publicly identified gives included one from a gaggle led by billionaire Frank McCourt and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian; one other that includes tech entrepreneur Jesse Tinsley and YouTube star MrBeast; a merger provide by San Francisco-based Perplexity AI; in addition to a bid from AppLovin Corp.
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