TikTok's US Ban Averted: Trump Signs Executive Order To Keep App Available In The United States

Washington: Donald Trump has signed an executive order approving a deal to keep TikTok available in the US. The popular Chinese-owned social media platform was facing uncertainty over its future in the country, but the new deal could change the scenario. According to sources, TikTok is set to be spun off into a separate US entity to comply with a 2024 law requiring the app's China-based parent company ByteDance to divest or face a US ban. The deal comes nine months after the law was originally set to go into effect.

Earlier, US President Trump revealed that he had a "very good talk" with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who reportedly gave the deal the green light. However, it's unclear whether Beijing is okay with the reported terms. Under the deal, a group of US investors, including Oracle and Silver Lake, will take a majority stake in the new TikTok entity, while ByteDance will maintain less than 20% in equity.

US Vice President JD Vance said that the company will be valued at around $14 billion, and Oracle will provide security for the new TikTok, including inspecting and retraining a copy of the recommendation algorithm on US user data. However, some lawmakers have already voiced concerns about how such an agreement would comply with requirements that the new TikTok sever any operational relationship with ByteDance, including on the algorithm.

The divest-or-ban law passed Congress with massive bipartisan support in April 2024 amid growing national security and data privacy concerns over the app's ties to China. "The fundamental thing that we wanted to accomplish is that we wanted to keep TikTok operating, but we also wanted to make sure that we protected Americans' data privacy as required by law," Vance said.

Meanwhile, the recent development has shed new light on the uncertain fate of TikTok in the United States. The Trump administration has been working on a deal to allow the popular social media platform to continue operating in the country, despite legislation signed by President Joe Biden last year requiring China's ByteDance to sell TikTok's assets to an American company or face a nationwide ban.

The change in TikTok's ownership structure could affect how Americans, particularly young adults and teenagers, consume information online. According to a Pew Research Center report, 43% of US adults under 30 regularly get news from TikTok, surpassing other social media platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram. The demographic's reliance on TikTok for news shows the platform's influence on shaping opinions and disseminating information among younger generations.

Trump revealed that Chinese President Xi Jinping has given the green light for the deal to proceed, although details about the arrangement remain scarce. The agreement's implications on TikTok's future operations and data privacy practices are yet to be seen.

TikTok's user base skews young, with 55% of US users under the age of 30. The platform has become an essential part of Gen Z's online experience, with users spending an average of 95 minutes per day on the app. 

All About New Leadership For TikTok

A consortium of American investors, including Oracle and Silver Lake Partners, will control the new TikTok venture, with a stake of around 80%. ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese parent company, will retain a 20% stake or less. The board of directors will be controlled by US investors, with six out of seven seats reserved for Americans. ByteDance will have one representative on the board but will be excluded from security matters and related committees.

The new TikTok venture will use a licensed copy of the ByteDance-created algorithm, retrained solely with US data. The step is to nullify any risk of Chinese interference and influence. The US government has expressed concerns about TikTok's algorithm being vulnerable to manipulation by Chinese authorities, but no evidence has been presented to support these claims.

The deal raises questions about political influence on the platform, given the involvement of Trump allies like Larry Ellison and Rupert Murdoch. The new ownership structure and changes to the algorithm may also impact the user experience, although it's unclear if the US version of TikTok will differ from the global version.