TikTok still doesn’t appear interested in selling its app.
As AFROTECH™ previously told you, the app was temporarily banned in the U.S. due to a mandate requiring TikTok — owned by China-based company ByteDance — to sell to a U.S.-based company. The ban, established by former President Joe Biden, was initially set to take effect on Jan. 19, 2025, but TikTok went offline 12 hours early after the Supreme Court moved to uphold the ban, Forbes reports.
President Donald Trump announced at the time he intended to save the app once he assumed office.
Users received a message on the app from TikTok that read, “Sorry, TikTok isn’t available right now. A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now. We are fortunate that President Donald Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned!”
Following his inauguration, Trump signed an executive order granting a 75-day extension that would give ByteDance more time to sell. According to Forbes, Trump is interested in “probably” extending the ban, stating, “We have a lot of interest in TikTok…so hopefully China will approve of the deal.” The extension could only be an additional 15 days to adhere to the law and could only go into effect if it can be proven that TikTok is working to close a deal.
At the time of this writing, ByteDance has been silent on whether it plans to sell the app, and it has not made efforts to negotiate with any interested buyers, per Axios.
Individuals who have stepped forward to acquire TikTok include YouTuber MrBeast, who is part of a group that has secured over $20 billion to bid for the app, according to Bloomberg. Additionally, Reddit Founder Alexis Ohanian Sr., who recently acquired Digg, has entered the bidding war by joining billionaire Frank McCourt’s buying group.
“Exciting news for the digital world…I’m officially now one of the people trying to buy TikTok US—and bring it on-chain,” Ohanian wrote on LinkedIn.
He continued, stating:
“TikTok has been a game-changer for creators, and its future should be built by them. Users should own their data. Creators should own their audience. Period. Frequency will empower these principles to become reality. And with transparency and accountability at the core, this new TikTok won’t just be fairer—it’ll be GREATER… We’re setting a new standard for what’s possible in digital communities. A TikTok for the people, by the people. Let’s see if we can pull this off.”
