WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump has extended the enforcement delay against TikTok until December 16, marking the fourth postponement of legislation designed to force the app’s sale from its Chinese owner.
The executive order announcement followed Trump’s earlier statement to reporters that the United States and China had reached a deal regarding TikTok’s US business ownership structure.
This extension continues previous delays implemented in January, April and June as the administration addresses complex legal and national security concerns surrounding TikTok’s American operations.
The latest delay was scheduled to expire on Wednesday, which would have activated a 2024 law signed by then-president Joe Biden to shut down TikTok in the United States due to its Chinese ownership.
The legislation aimed to address national security worries about TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance and its potential connections to the Chinese government.
Trump, whose 2024 election campaign heavily utilized social media and who has expressed personal fondness for TikTok, suspended the ban implementation.
US officials have scrutinized the app over data collection and content manipulation concerns, though TikTok consistently denies sharing user data with Chinese authorities and has legally challenged various restrictions.
“We have a deal on TikTok; I’ve reached a deal with China. I’m going to speak to President Xi (Jinping) on Friday to confirm everything,“ Trump told reporters before departing the White House for a state visit to Britain.
Trump mentioned that “a group of very big companies” wanted to purchase TikTok, adding he would “hate to see value like that thrown out the window.”
China confirmed both sides had established a “framework” agreement to be finalized during the upcoming phone conversation between the two leaders.
TikTok currently boasts nearly two billion global users worldwide.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the new arrangement would place TikTok’s US business under control of an investor consortium including Oracle and Andreessen Horowitz, with Chinese owners retaining less than 20% ownership to comply with US law.
Both companies maintain close ties to the Trump administration, and Oracle already plays a significant role in TikTok’s US infrastructure operations.
ByteDance’s existing US investors, including Susquehanna International, KKR and General Atlantic, would participate in the group owning approximately 80% of the new company.
A major unresolved question involves the fate of TikTok’s powerful algorithm that propelled the app to become one of the world’s most popular entertainment platforms.
The preliminary deal resulted from two days of negotiations in Madrid between US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng.
The executive order prohibits the US Justice Department from taking enforcement action during the extended period and retroactively for any conduct occurring since the ban’s original January 19, 2025 effective date. – AFP
