The long-running geopolitical tug-of-war over the world’s most popular short-form video application appears to have reached its finale, resolving a five-year saga that bridged two US presidencies and a brief nationwide service blackout.
Following months of high-stakes negotiation brokered by the returned Trump administration, the uncertainty surrounding TikTok’s presence in the American market has effectively ended. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew confirmed to staff on Thursday that parent company ByteDance has entered into binding agreements to divest a controlling stake in its American operations.
The Deal Structure
The agreement involves selling just over 80 per cent of the company’s US assets to a consortium of heavyweight investors. The buying group includes American cloud computing giant Oracle (ORCL.N), private equity firm Silver Lake, and the Abu Dhabi-based investment company MGX.
The new entity will operate under the name TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, explicitly referencing "US Data Security"—a nod to the years of legislative scrutiny regarding the app's handling of American user data. The deal is scheduled to close on January 22, 2026.
From Blackout to Buyout
The path to this sale has been volatile. While concerns over Chinese state influence began during Donald Trump’s first term in 2020, they culminated in the passing of a divest-or-ban law signed by President Joe Biden in April 2024.
The standoff reached its nadir on January 18, 2025, when the deadline for divestiture expired. For nearly 24 hours, TikTok ceased functioning for millions of American users and vanished from the Apple and Google app stores. Service was only restored the following day after then-President-elect Trump intervened, promising to revive the platform upon his inauguration—a stark reversal from his 2020 stance where he signed the initial executive order attempting to ban the app.
A Geopolitical Pivot
The sale represents a complex victory for all parties involved. For Washington, placing the platform under majority ownership of US-aligned entities like Oracle and Silver Lake addresses the national security concerns that drove the initial legislation. For ByteDance, retaining a minority stake allows them to keep a foothold in their most lucrative market, avoiding a total exit.
Analysts suggest the inclusion of Oracle is strategic, as the company has long been ByteDance’s partner in "Project Texas," an initiative designed to wall off US user data from Chinese servers.
Timeline: The Five-Year Saga of TikTok in the US
Storm Kristin has killed at least three people and left more than 800,000 residents without electricity across central and northern Portugal, as viole...
U.S. stock markets finished mixed on Wednesday (28 January) as investors reacted calmly after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged, a dec...
Liverpool confirmed direct qualification to the UEFA Champions League round of 16 with a 6-0 win over Qarabağ at Anfield in their final league-phase ...
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has called for tax increases on the city’s wealthiest residents and most profitable corporations, warning that th...
The United States is handing over a tanker to Venezuela that it seized earlier this month, according to two U.S. officials, marking the first known ca...
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday approving the transfer of TikTok’s U.S. operations from Chinese owner ByteDance to a consortium of American investors, preventing the app from being banned under U.S. national security law.
President Donald Trump said in the Oval Office that Chinese President Xi Jinping had approved a deal for U.S. firms to acquire TikTok’s American operations, calling an earlier phone call with Xi “very productive” on trade, fentanyl, Ukraine, and the TikTok deal.
President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the U.S. and China have a deal that would keep TikTok operating in the United States, transferring its U.S. assets to U.S. owners from China's ByteDance, potentially resolving a saga that has lingered for nearly a year.
A framework deal has been reached between the U.S. and China over the ownership of social media platform TikTok, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said following trade talks in Madrid.
France’s National Assembly has approved a bill banning access to social media for children under 15, a move backed by President Emmanuel Macron and the government as part of efforts to protect teenagers’ mental and physical health.
The S&P 500 edged to a record closing high on Tuesday, marking its fifth consecutive day of gains, as strong advances in technology stocks offset a sharp selloff in healthcare shares and a mixed batch of corporate earnings.
Israel has recovered the remains of the last remaining hostage held in Gaza, the military said on Monday, fulfilling a key condition of the initial phase of U.S. President Donald Trump's plan to end the war in the Palestinian territory.
Sanctions are a long-used tool designed as an alternative to military force and with the objective of changing governments’ behaviour, but they also end up hurting civilian citizens.
A routine military training exercise turned into a major recovery mission this week after a catastrophic mudslide swept through a hillside in West Java, Indonesia.
Life will be particularly tough for Ukrainians over the next three weeks due to plunging temperatures and a compromised energy infrastructure that has been pummeled by intense Russian attacks, depriving millions of light and heat, a senior lawmaker said on Wednesday.
Storm Kristin has killed at least three people and left more than 800,000 residents without electricity across central and northern Portugal, as violent winds, heavy rain and snowfall battered the country before moving into Spain.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has called for tax increases on the city’s wealthiest residents and most profitable corporations, warning that the city is facing a fiscal crisis on a scale greater than the Great Recession.
The United States is handing over a tanker to Venezuela that it seized earlier this month, according to two U.S. officials, marking the first known case of Donald Trump’s administration returning such a vessel, Reuters reported.
Colombian authorities on Wednesday located a missing plane carrying 15 people in the northeast of the country, with no survivors found, an Air Force source and local media said.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment