The popular app TikTok, with over 170 million users in the United States, was given an ultimatum to either sell its US operations to an American company or face a ban effective January 19.
Washington: Former US President Donald Trump addressed speculation about billionaire Elon Musk potentially acquiring TikTok, expressing openness to the idea. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Trump said, “I would be [open to it] if he wanted to buy it.”
“I’ve spoken with the major stakeholders of TikTok,” Trump added. “What I’m considering suggesting is, ‘Buy it and give half to the United States of America.’”
The US Supreme Court recently issued a permanent ban on TikTok over national security and privacy concerns, requiring ByteDance, the app’s Chinese parent company, to divest its US operations or cease functioning in the country.
TikTok Denies Musk Talks; Trump Extends Ban Deadline
Last week, Bloomberg News reported that Chinese officials had initiated discussions about potentially selling TikTok’s US operations to Musk. However, TikTok dismissed these claims as baseless.
On Monday, Trump signed an executive order postponing the enforcement of the ban by 75 days. This decision followed warnings from US officials that ByteDance could misuse American user data, raising significant security risks.
The US Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision on Friday, upheld the federal law requiring TikTok to divest its US assets. The court rejected Trump’s request to delay the ruling to allow his administration to seek a “political resolution” to the matter.
TikTok, ByteDance, and some of the platform’s users argued that the statute violated First Amendment rights. Meanwhile, the Biden administration highlighted the potential national security risks posed by ByteDance’s ownership and control of TikTok.
TikTok reportedly requested a “definitive statement” from the Biden administration to assure Google, Apple, and other companies that they would not face penalties for continuing to host the app nationwide. TikTok warned that without such an assurance, it might “be forced to go dark” on Sunday.
White House Reacts to TikTok’s Request
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre criticized TikTok’s demands, calling them “a stunt.”
“We see no reason for TikTok or any other company to take drastic actions before the Trump administration transitions out of office,” Jean-Pierre said on Saturday. TikTok has not yet responded to requests for comment regarding the matter.
