This week, President Donald Trump is anticipated to endorse an trump-says/” title=”Could It Be True? … Suggests Americans Might Actually Prefer a Strongman Leader”>executive order that will authorize the divestiture of TikTok’s US operations from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, in accordance with legislation enacted for 2024.
The White House revealed the agreement on Monday, with a senior official confirming that the US government believes China has given its consent to the deal. No further negotiations with Beijing are expected, although some formal documentation remains to be completed by both parties.
Trump has been actively working to prevent a ban on TikTok, which boasts approximately 170 million users in the United States, following a congressional mandate requiring ByteDance to relinquish its American assets by January of this year.
The enforcement of this deadline has been postponed until mid-December, as the administration strives to restructure TikTok’s US operations, attract American investors, and ensure the transaction complies with divestiture regulations. The White House has delayed the deadline four times so far-in February, April, June, and most recently last week.
An official from the White House described the deal as being worth “several billions of dollars.”
Despite progress, regulatory challenges persist, including potential antitrust reviews. While the full roster of investors is still being finalized, the White House stated that six out of seven board seats overseeing TikTok’s US branch will be held by American citizens. ByteDance will maintain a minority stake of less than 20%, with TikTok US ownership distributed among a combination of existing American and international firms, alongside new investors unaffiliated with ByteDance.
Among the confirmed investors are venture capital firm Silver Lake, Oracle, and Andreessen Horowitz.
Oracle’s cofounder Larry Ellison, known for his close ties to Trump, and Marc Andreessen, who has publicly acknowledged spending considerable time at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate since the 2024 election, are notable figures involved in the deal.
Trump also highlighted over the weekend that the Murdoch family, proprietors of Fox News, are part of the investment group. The White House emphasized that the investor pool must be “patriotic,” though the criteria for this designation remain unclear.
Seth Stern, advocacy director at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, expressed concerns to Al Jazeera, stating, “Trump recently suggested that criticism of him should be outlawed. Now, he is handing control of one of America’s most popular social media platforms to his billionaire political allies. It would be unrealistic to assume they won’t suppress dissenting voices while promoting content favorable to him.”
The White House dismissed these claims, labeling them as baseless conspiracy theories. Spokesperson Kush Desai told Al Jazeera, “This completely unfounded paranoia has no grounding in reality and should be disregarded. Instead of spreading misinformation, media analysts and reporters should focus on how President Trump has negotiated a deal that preserves TikTok while safeguarding national and economic security.”
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt assured reporters on Monday that “US TikTok users will continue to access videos from international users and vice versa.”
US user data will be stored on Oracle’s cloud servers. According to The Wall Street Journal, the revamped company’s engineers will have the authority to modify the app’s algorithm.
Leavitt explained, “The algorithm will be developed, updated, and managed within the United States, independent of ByteDance’s influence.”
Anonymous Trump administration officials told The Associated Press that Oracle will receive a copy of the algorithm to help “prevent potential manipulation of addictive content.”
Investors have reacted positively to the impending deal, with Oracle’s stock rising over 5% by mid-afternoon in New York (18:30 GMT).
The White House projects that this agreement could stimulate up to $178 billion in economic activity over the next four years.
This negotiation unfolds amid heightened scrutiny of US media companies. Recently, ABC suspended comedian Jimmy Kimmel indefinitely after his comments on the Trump administration’s response to conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s shooting death sparked backlash. Nexstar Media Group, which operates numerous local stations including ABC affiliates and is currently undergoing a merger review by the Department of Justice and FCC, announced it would cease broadcasting “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on its stations.
The TikTok deal also coincides with ongoing trade discussions between Washington and Beijing.
Maria Pechurina, director of international trade at Peacock Tariff Consulting, told Al Jazeera, “For the US, maintaining TikTok’s operations aligns with political interests, such as engaging younger users, despite the national security concerns that initially prompted the platform’s potential ban.”
She added, “China’s concessions on this deal are likely aimed at securing broader reciprocal benefits from the US, including tariff reductions, relaxed investment restrictions, and progress on semiconductor export controls.”
Over the weekend, members of the US House of Representatives met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Beijing to “break the ice” during trade talks, which saw rare progress last week.
On Friday, Trump spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time in three months following the announcement of the potential TikTok divestment.
Oracle representatives did not respond to requests for comment from Al Jazeera.
