At the weekend, Trump, who will be sworn in as the next US President on Monday, had already promised Tiktok an additional delay of three months. He will issue a presidential decree extending the deadline on Monday.
Trump also suggested that “the United States” – obviously the US state – take a 50 percent stake in a joint venture with the current or new Tiktok owners. In this way, Tiktok will be saved and left in good hands.
“Why would I want to get rid of Tiktok?”
It is unclear on what legal basis Trump wants to give Tiktok more time. According to the law, the US President can grant an extension of 90 days. However, the prerequisite for this is that there are promising sales negotiations.
During his first term in office, Trump once wanted to force the sale of Tiktok by threatening to ban it, but failed in court. In the meantime he discovered his heart for the platform. Trump argued that he was successful on Tiktok and was able to appeal to many young people there in the race for the White House. “Why would I want to get rid of Tiktok?” During the presidential election campaign, US billionaire Jeff Yass, who holds 15 percent of the China-based Tiktok owner Bytedance, also donated almost $100 million to Trump and his Republican allies.
At the same time, important Republicans in Congress made it clear on Sunday that they were not softening their position on Tiktok. Tom Cotton, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, emphasized that Bytedance would have to agree to a sale in order for Tiktok to go back online. House Speaker Mike Johnson also said on US television: “The Chinese Communist Party is not our friend and we must ensure it changes hands.”
Tense relationship with China
However, the law, which was confirmed by the US Supreme Court on Friday, also ties Trump's hands as president. However, he repeatedly expressed his conviction that he could negotiate a deal for the app. Tiktok could potentially become a bargaining chip in the overall tense relationship between Washington and Beijing.
Another sign of how high the platform is now in Trump's favor: According to media reports, Tiktok boss Shou Chew will be at Trump's inauguration on Monday.
Clear situation according to US law
Bytedance was given 270 days to divest from the video app last year under the US law on foreign control of online platforms.
After the deadline expired on Sunday, according to the law, Tiktok had to be kicked out of the American app stores of Apple and Google and lose access to technical infrastructure. The law stipulates high penalties of $5,000 per user for US service providers who continue to provide Tiktok. That could quickly amount to billions.
In recent months, Tiktok and Bytedance have always refused to even consider a separation. There are fears in the USA that the Chinese government could gain access to Tiktok data from Americans and use the platform to influence public opinion. The companies reject the allegations. Nevertheless, the concerns led to the law being passed with a large majority.
Biden wanted to give way to Trump
But as the deadline approached, it became clear that outgoing President Joe Biden's administration had no desire to deal with a Tiktok blackout on the last day of his term. The White House said it would leave enforcement of the law to Trump.
This was intended to signal that violations of the law by US companies would not be punished. However, this was not enough for Tiktok – and, according to media reports, especially for the app's partners, who were threatened with punishment.
On Friday, Tiktok demanded direct assurances from the government, at least to the most important tech service providers. Otherwise the platform will be shut down in the USA. The White House found that sufficient clarity had been provided and viewed the announcement as a demonstrative action. “We see no reason for Tiktok or other companies to take action before the Trump administration takes over on Monday,” said spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre.
The users are angry
Tiktok shut down anyway, even before the deadline on Saturday evening. The video editing app Capcut and the Tiktok alternative Lemon8, which also belong to the Bytedance Group, also no longer worked. The Bytedance applications could no longer be found in the app stores. Many users vented their anger on other online platforms such as tech billionaire Elon Musk's X. Tiktok had previously tried to mobilize fans of the app against the law.
