Amazon has made a last-minute bid to acquire the popular Chinese-owned short-video platform TikTok, just days before the impending April 5 deadline for TikTok to divest its US operations. This development comes as regulatory pressure surrounding the app’s future intensifies.
TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, has been mandated to divest TikTok’s US operations under the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act. The act requires the company to sell its US business to a non-Chinese entity by January 19, 2025, or face a potential ban. Although ByteDance briefly suspended operations in the US in January, the company resumed services after former President Trump signed an executive order extending the deadline to April 5, giving the company a final chance to secure a deal.
Despite several parties expressing interest in purchasing the platform, including private equity firm Blackstone, Amazon’s bid adds a new layer of uncertainty to TikTok’s future in the US. The US venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz has also been reported to raise additional funds in an attempt to buy out TikTok’s Chinese investors. Additionally, a group of American investors, led by Oracle, is reportedly working on a separate bid to sever TikTok from ByteDance.
As of now, ByteDance has not disclosed the status of the sale, leaving TikTok’s 170 million US users uncertain about their future on the platform. With the deadline rapidly approaching, the fate of TikTok remains in limbo, with the looming threat of a potential ban if no deal is struck.