Photo Credit: Solen Feyissa
Is “TikTok USA” really a done deal? The video-sharing giant’s stateside divestment appeared imminent last month, but new comments are raising questions about the transaction’s precise status.
Chinese officials made those comments – published in English via the Communist nation’s state-run China Daily paper – during the holiday break. Having heretofore flown under the radar, the vague remarks don’t quite read as though they’re referencing a signed-and-sealed agreement.
And multiple twists later, the TikTok USA selloff did seem like a certainty in mid-December, when the platform reportedly inked a related contract with a January 22nd close date.
While that timetable (or at least the sale itself) is presumably still in place, the Chinese government’s most recent statement is depicting the app’s U.S. version as less “in the bag” than previously thought. (As most know by now, Beijing’s signoff is a must if the deal is to wrap.)
When asked about the reportedly finalized agreement between TikTok and U.S. investors, a Ministry of Commerce spokesperson described the need to “reach a solution regarding TikTok that…achieves a balance of interests,” the China Daily relayed.
Furthermore, with the benefit of “a basic framework consensus” on the TikTok issue at the government level, the U.S. is compelled to “earnestly fulfill its relevant commitments,” according to the same source.
Just in case that wasn’t clear enough, the spokesperson went ahead and called for “a fair, open, transparent, and non-discriminatory business environment for the continuous and stable operation of Chinese enterprises in the United States.”
Translation: Despite, or perhaps because of, the advantageous (for ByteDance) terms of the TikTok USA deal, the Chinese government is looking to squeeze a bit more out of the situation.
Admittedly, this strategy doesn’t come as a surprise. In a rare moment of bipartisan unity, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle rallied to pass the TikTok ban bill during the previous administration. But following multiple shutdown-deadline extensions, they haven’t been all that vocal about outlawing the platform.
On the contrary, congressmembers last year introduced the aptly titled “Extend the TikTok Deadline Act.” As some will recall, ticked-off TikTokers in 2024 inundated lawmakers’ offices with angry messages concerning the ban.
Considering the fact alongside (probably ongoing) donor pressure stemming from the app’s long list of corporate partners, the reality that many on Capitol Hill are actively posting on TikTok (not with government devices, however), and the divestment framework – well, it’s probably not a great time for vote-minded lawmakers to take a hardline ban stance.
Of course, those on the other side of the table are aware of this, and it’ll be worth tracking the divestment from here. That’s not to suggest that a straight ban will necessarily materialize; evidently, though, there’s time yet for additional hurdles.
