United States President, Donald Trump, has announced an agreement that will place TikTok under the control of a group of U.S. investors.
The announcement comes months after a ban on the China-based app was scheduled to take effect at the start of the year.
According to ABC News, Trump delayed the ban several times and is now moving to secure the platform for U.S. ownership.
Attention has focused on TikTok’s algorithm, the formula that drives the app. Vice President J.D. Vance, who joined Trump at the Oval Office announcement, said the agreement would bring the algorithm “under the control of American investors,” with details to follow in the coming days.
“This deal really does mean Americans can use TikTok but actually use it with more confidence than they had in the past because their data is secure and it won’t be used as a propaganda weapon like it has in the past,” Vance said.
He added that the U.S.-based version of TikTok will be valued at $14 billion.
Trump said Chinese President Xi Jinping approved the agreement, though China had not confirmed the terms by Thursday afternoon. He named Oracle as one of the U.S. investors but did not release the full list of owners.
Congress passed the ban last spring with bipartisan support, giving TikTok 270 days to cut ties with parent company ByteDance or face removal.
TikTok challenged the law on First Amendment grounds but lost in the Supreme Court. The unanimous ruling supported national security concerns about potential data collection or manipulation by the Chinese government.
Source:Tribune Online
