A new stir has begun in America regarding the social media platform TikTok. President Donald Trump has indicated that if a final agreement regarding the sale of TikTok's U.S. unit is not reached by June 19, he may consider extending this deadline. "We want the deal to be completed, but if needed, the deadline can be extended," Trump said.
US alleges this app can provide information of US citizens to China
ByteDance is from China, and the US alleges that this app can provide information of American citizens to the Chinese government. This is why the US has clearly said—if ByteDance does not sell TikTok's US unit to an American company, the app will be banned across the country. This decision has been taken in view of national security.
China has objected to the plan
This deal related to the sale of TikTok has already been postponed twice—first it was to be implemented in January, then April and now a new deadline of June has been set. Under this deal, TikTok's US assets will be transferred to a new US company, which will be controlled by US investors. But China has objected to this plan, especially when the US has imposed a tariff of 145% on goods imported from China.
Trump's change in stance
Although earlier Trump was in favor of banning TikTok, now his stance has softened somewhat. He said that "TikTok is an interesting app and it helps in connecting with young voters." He also clarified that he will not remove the tariff, but it may be relaxed in a future trade agreement.
Many big US companies are interested in buying TikTok's US unit
Many big US companies are showing interest in buying TikTok's US unit - Oracle, Microsoft, Amazon and even the name of famous YouTuber MrBeast have also appeared in the list of potential buyers. Democratic lawmakers have questioned Trump's stance. He said there was no legal basis for repeatedly extending the deadline, and asked whether ByteDance would ever be able to fully separate from TikTok.
Prakash Kumar Pandey