Tiktok, owned by the Chinese company Bytedance, has been at the center of the controversy in the US for four years now due to concerns about user data potentially reached by the Chinese government. Earlier this year, the app suffered a temporary interruption in the US that left millions of users in suspension before it is quickly reset.
Tiktok returned to the App Store and Google Play Store in February.
However, the future of Tiktok remains uncertain, and a second possible prohibition on April 5 is approaching. A number of investors are competing for the opportunity to buy the app, and if an agreement was to go, the US platform business may have its growing estimate of $ 60 billion, as estimated by senior CFRA Research, Angelo Zino.
TIKTOK stop: what has happened so far
To fully understand this drama of high interest, we will first review the timeline of Tiktok’s shocked relationship with the US government, which resulted in various legal battles and negotiations.
The drama first began in August 2020, when Trump signed an executive order to stop transactions with the parent company bytedance.
A month later, the Trump administration tried to force a US Tiktok operations sale to a US -centered company. The main claimants included Microsoft, Oracle and Walmart. However, a US judge temporarily blocked Trump’s executive order, allowing TIKTOK to continue to operate while legal battles were unveiled.
Things began to advance even more last year after switching to Biden administration. The US Chamber of Representatives, with a 360-58 voting, adopted the legislation against Tiktok. On April 23, 2024, the Senate approved the bill.
Shortly thereafter, President Joe Biden signed the draft law demanding that Tiktok be sold or banned. In response, Tiktok sued the US government, challenging the constitutionality of the ban and arguing the app and its US users were violating their first rights. The company has repeatedly denied that it poses a security threat, claiming that its retained data in the US complies with all local laws.
Trump has a heart change
On December 27, 2024, Trump objected to Tiktok’s potential detention in a court, stating that he could find a way to keep the app in the US this attitude was a fierce contrast to his approach during his first presidency and presented a startling turn of Tiktok events.
In January, the US Supreme Court supported the protection of Americans from the law of controlled applications of reverse foreign control (innocence), commonly referred to as “TIKTOKE prohibition”. Tiktok made an official announcement that it is likely to be darkened on January 19th.
Tiktok shuts down … then back to the Internet
Although Tiktok really closed in the US when the act came into force, it did not last long. The app returned to the Internet less than 12 hours later. The platform noted, “As a result of President Trump’s efforts, Tiktok has returned to the US”
Where are we today
On January 20, Trump signed an executive order that pushed Tiktok’s detention for 75 days. This addition provides the application with extra time to sell a platform share or reach a deal with Trump. Its goal is to achieve an arrangement of 50-50 ownership between Bytedance and an American company.
Recently, in early March, Trump told reporters that his administration was in talks with four different groups interested in buying the platform for Reuters.
No final agreement has yet been reached for the sale of the platform, but we could detect very quickly.
Below is a list of groups of investors and rumored companies that they are potential buyers of US Tiktok operations. (Surprisingly, Elon Musk is not among them.)
People’s offer to tiktok
The people’s offer to Tiktok is a consortium organized by the founder of the Liberty Frank McCourt project, who is also the former owner of Los Angeles Dodgers. Investment firm Guggenheim Securities and Kirkland & Ellis legal firm are helping to collect the offer. The main mission of people’s offer to get tiktok is to prioritize intimacy and data control, taking an open source approach.
Supporters involved include:
- Alexis OHANIAN: Reddi’s co -founder is the latest technology entrepreneur to join people’s offer, taking on the role of strategic advisor. He joined on March 3.
- Kevin O’Leary: A well -known investor and television personality who previously told Fox that he was ready to buy Tiktok for $ 20 billion. O’Leary joined the people’s offer on January 6th.
- Tim Berners-Lee: The inventor of the World Wide Web supports the proposal because “users must have an ability to control their data,” Berners-Lee said in a statement.
- David Clark: A senior research scientist in the Laboratory of Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence MIT, Clark has also been named one participant.
The consortium of US investors
Jesse Tinsley, CEO and Employer Founder.com, is leading a consortium of American investors. Last month, Tinsley announced an offer of all money $ 30 billion to obtain US tiktok operations.
- David Baszucki: Tinsley told Bloomberg that Roblox’s co -founder and CEO is a participant.
- Nathan McCauley: The co -founder and CEO of the Crypto Anchorage Digital platform has been confirmed to be participating in the consortium, Bloomberg reported.
Other stakeholders
- Amazon: The e -commerce giant is the latest company reported to throw its hat into the ring.
- Bobby Kotick: Former -ceo of Activision is reported to be interested in buying tiktok. With his experience in managing a large gaming company, his interest in the application can be driven by the potential to integrate games and social media.
- Steven Mnuchin: The former US Treasury Secretary, who served during President Trump’s first term, has reinstated discussions about Tiktok’s possible acquisition.
- Oracle: The company previously made an offer for Tiktok again in 2020. In front of the White House in January, Oracle Larry Ellison co -founder told Trump that 50% ownership “looked like a good deal”. Information reported in March that Oracle is the main solution to serve as a Cloud technology partner to help TIKTOK run to the US
- Walmart: The retail giant can also be at the eyes of Tiktok to improve its achievement in e -commerce, especially taking into account the impact of the platform on consumer purchases. Walmart first expressed interest in 2020.
- Microsoft: The technology giant has previously shown interest in buying Tiktok, and Trump mentioned that the company has recently reset off offers to buy the app.
- Rumble: Alternative on YouTube announced on X that he wants to get Tiktok and serve as his Cloud technology partner.
- Alien he: The start of the search engine he submitted an offer last month, according to CNBC.
History has been updated after publication to include new stakeholders.
