TikTok remained unavailable in Google and Apple's app stores on Tuesday — amid speculation about a U.S. buyer who could help “save” the struggling video-sharing app. Despite that.
Big tech doesn't seem willing to risk liability, even though President Trump late Monday issued an executive order delaying implementation of Congress' anti-divestment bill by 75 days.
The popular Chinese-owned video app was also unavailable in app stores run by Amazon and Microsoft. Operators will be fined $5,000 per user if they allow new downloads or updates to their 170 million existing users in the United States. They are being fined $850 billion.
President Trump has said he wants the United States to own 50% of TikTok, but the details of that structure remain unclear. The scope of TikTok's parent company ByteDance's ownership in such arrangements was unclear.
“If you're going to make a deal for America, I think you should get half of it,” Trump said in the Oval Office as he signed a bundle of executive orders.
“I think the US should have the right to take half of TikTok. Congratulations, TikTok has a good partner.”
A number of potential U.S. buyers have been floated, but TikTok and ByteDance have previously refused to negotiate a sale within the 270-day period between the bill's passage last April and the January 19 deadline. Ta.
Elon Musk, the owner of X and a close ally of President Trump, is worth about $428 billion, and has been floated as a possible candidate. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said Musk is the frontrunner because of his strong business ties to China.
“We believe there is significant activity taking place behind the scenes by both financial and strategic tech buyers surrounding the golden TikTok assets,” Ives said in a note to clients.
According to multiple reports, Chinese government officials are considering the possibility of selling TikTok to Musk, but TikTok officials have dismissed that as “pure fiction.”
Oracle, led by billionaire technology titan Larry Ellison, is a natural fit. The company was already TikTok's primary cloud computing partner and came close to acquiring TikTok as part of a joint bid with Walmart in 2020 during early efforts to ban the app. At this time, Oracle has yet to comment publicly on whether it is interested.
Billionaire Frank McCourt and “Shark Tank” star Kevin O'Leary have teamed up in a $20 billion pitch to buy TikTok and rebuild its recommendation algorithm from scratch on U.S. soil.
Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who expressed interest in TikTok last year, told CNBC that he has since paused his plans but remains open to investing in the company. Former Activision Blizzard chief Bobby Kotick is also said to be interested.
In a major development, the Chinese government, which had repeatedly said in the past it would block attempted forced sales, reversed its stance on Monday and signaled there was room for compromise.
China's Foreign Ministry said private companies can make their own decisions on “enterprise operations and acquisitions.”
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew has stepped up his charm offensive and was even spotted attending President Trump's inauguration.
President Trump's executive order gave TikTok a deadline of April 5 to finalize the agreement. However, it is unclear whether the order, which supersedes the law, can be enforced if challenged in court.
Under the sale law, which was unanimously upheld by the Supreme Court, an extension can only be granted if there are signs of “significant progress” towards a deal.
The app shut down for just 12 hours before returning on Sunday ahead of President Trump's inauguration. TikTok's brief shutdown went beyond the law requiring a halt to new downloads and was slammed by some critics as a “stunt” aimed at stirring up public anger. .
Under President Trump's order, the U.S. Attorney General will send a letter to service providers such as Apple, Google, and Oracle, stating that they will be held accountable for any conduct that occurs during the period specified above, and for any conduct after the effective date of the executive order. The government said it will send a letter stating that it will not bear any liability. This law does not apply until this Executive Order is issued. ”
It is unlikely that a 50-50 split with China would meet the legal requirements, and the company is required to confirm with U.S. government agencies that the risk has been eliminated before selling China's interest in TikTok.
“The law passed by Congress and upheld by the Supreme Court would force Apple and Google to protect their companies if TikTok remains owned and controlled by a foreign adversary,” said Michael Sobolik, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute. We're requiring TikTok to be removed from the app store. That's a fact.” The author of Counting China's Great Game told the Post.
Ahead of Inauguration Day, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) issued a stern warning to service providers that if they don't comply with the law, they could “face catastrophic liability in the hundreds of billions of dollars.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson, another Trump ally, said Congress would “enforce the law.”
