Donald Trump says a deal to sell TikTok is likely to be finalized before a deadline this Saturday (April 5).
The popular short-video app is owned by Chinese company ByteDance. In January, the Supreme Court upheld a law banning TikTok from operating in the US. TikTok had been in a months-long dispute with the US government (under Joe Biden), which wanted to force ByteDance to sell its US operations to keep TikTok in the country.
ByteDance had appealed to the Court against the ban law, claiming that it violates freedom of speech for the application's users in the US, who exceed 170 million.
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During a hearing in January, the Department of Justice (DOJ) argued that the law does not violate the First Amendment because it does not seek to regulate free speech on the platform or its algorithm. The DOJ also argued that the Chinese government could force ByteDance to secretly hand over the data of millions of Americans. According to the government, this was also the main reason for banning or selling TikTok: the risk to national security.
TikTok was indeed shut down in the US, but it was back up and running a few hours later. The app was back up and running after President Donald Trump announced he was givingByteDance a 90-day extension to find a buyer in the country. The president said that during that time, the company would need to “determine the appropriate course of action in a way that protects national security while avoiding the abrupt shutdown of a communications platform used by millions of Americans.”
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It is worth noting that Donald Trump was also against TikTok during his previous term and had tried to ban it himself. Now, it seems that he has changed his mind.
The deadline he had given TikTok expires next Saturday and Donald Trump says he is optimistic about reaching an agreement with China's ByteDance before April 5.
The US President said that interest in TikTok was great: “We have a lot of potential buyers. There is a huge interest in TikTok, the decision will be mine, as you know, through Congress. I have been given the power to make the decision… I would like to see TikTok stay alive.”
Trump had previously said he was willing to extend the April 5 deadline if a deal on the social media app.
The current situation with TikTok highlights the critical issue of national security when it comes to technology. In today’s interconnected world, data and information are constantly being shared across borders. This raises concerns for governments that want to protect the privacy and sensitive information of their citizens from potential threats.
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However, many American creators were disappointed with the TikTok ban. TikTok is a big part of their social and entertainment lives , so a ban would significantly impact their daily lives. In addition, the ban could lead to lost opportunities for influencers and content creators who use the platform to make money.
Source: Reuters
