US President Trump firmly stated that he will not be extending the deadline set for ByteDance, the Chinese owned tech company behind TikTok. In an Executive Order he issued last month, ByteDance was given 45 days to sell its US operations or have them shut down. Both Microsoft and Oracle had made offers to acquire the hugely popular video sharing app but the Chinese government has allegedly prohibited TikTok in doing negotiations with these companies. At the moment, it is still unclear when the ban would take effect as there are two deadlines mentioned on the Executive Orders; one says around September 20 and the other by mid-November.
Read: Chinese Technology Stocks Drop as Trump Bans WeChat and TikTok in the U.S.
CNN: TikTok has sued the Trump administration in response to what it said is a “heavily politicized” executive order
CNN Politics reporter Paul LeBlanc announced that President Trump said Thursday he will not extend the fast-approaching September 20 deadline he set for ByteDance, the Chinese-owned parent company of Tiktok, to sell the popular app or have it be banned.
Last month, he claimed in an executive order that there is “credible evidence” that ByteDance “might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States.”
“We far prefer constructive dialogue over litigation,” TikTok said in a blog post announcing the case. “But with the Executive Order threatening to bring a ban on our US operations — eliminating the creation of 10,000 American jobs and irreparably harming the millions of Americans who turn to this app for entertainment, connection, and legitimate livelihoods that are vital especially during the pandemic — we simply have no choice.”
Ars Technica: TikTok could face a US ban if it doesn’t find a US buyer in the next five days
In a similar news by Ars Technica, they disclosed that ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, is facing a looming September 15 deadline to sell its US operations or have them shut down by the Trump administration. On Thursday evening, President Trump told reporters that the deadline wouldn’t be pushed back.
Reports indicate that both Microsoft and Oracle have made offers for ByteDance’s US operations. The problem is that the companies may not be able to appease the conflicting demands of the US and Chinese governments.
ByteDance fielded offers from both Microsoft and Oracle and was reportedly close to choosing one of them when the Chinese government intervened. At the end of August, Beijing announced new export control rules that limited exports of artificial intelligence software without government approval.
