414The news about the possible sale of TikTok's U.S. business has once again attracted global attention.
On July 8, Beijing time, in response to multiple foreign media reports that "TikTok's U.S. business has agreed to be sold to a U.S. consortium led by Oracle," TikTok's parent company ByteDance made a clear response: the news is not true.
The company emphasized that similar rumors had already appeared as early as April this year, and clarifications were made at that time.
Image source: Weibo screenshot
This denial directly targets the recently heated rumors of "TikTok U.S. divestiture." According to The New York Times, former U.S. President Trump stated on July 4 that TikTok's U.S. business has "basically reached a sale agreement", and that he himself would negotiate with the Chinese side on the 7th or 8th. Trump also added that for the deal to be finalized, it would still need to be approved by the Chinese side.
Although Trump did not reveal the specific identity of the potential buyer, he hinted in a Fox News interview that a group of "very wealthy people" are trying to buy TikTok's U.S. business. Bloomberg further pointed out that the interested buyer is likely a U.S. consortium composed of Oracle, Blackstone, and Andreessen Horowitz, among others.
Image source: Internet
Potential Deal Structure Exposed, Core Issues Remain Unresolved
According to the "draft" version disclosed by foreign media, the deal plans to introduce new U.S. investors to form a joint venture, in which the U.S. consortium may hold up to 50%, existing investors retain about 30%, and ByteDance's shares will be controlled below 20%, in an attempt to meet the regulatory requirements of the U.S. "sell or ban" bill.
However, whether this structure truly meets the security standards of the U.S. Congress remains highly uncertain. The New York Times pointed out that the focus of the dispute is still on a core issue: Will TikTok's core algorithm be handed over to the U.S. side?
This is also the most sensitive issue that U.S. regulators are most concerned about and the Chinese side is least likely to compromise on.
Image source: The New York Times Chinese website
Pressure from the "Sell or Ban" Bill Remains, Grace Period Enters Countdown
The requirement for TikTok's U.S. business to be "sold" began in 2024. At that time, U.S. President Biden signed the "Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act" (commonly known as the "sell or ban" bill), requiring ByteDance to divest TikTok's U.S. business within a specified time, or face removal from app stores.
The original divestiture deadline was January 19, 2025. After Trump returned to the White House, he extended the deadline to April 5 this year. As the situation evolved, TikTok's "buffer period" was extended twice, and the latest final deadline has been set for September 17, 2025.
This also means that TikTok does not have much time left to deal with the uncertainty in the U.S. market.
Image source: Internet
China's Official Position is Clear: Relevant Transactions Must Be Approved According to Law
In response to the frequently discussed topic of "forced sale of TikTok," China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded as early as the beginning of this year: Any cross-border transaction involving Chinese enterprises must be approved according to law and decided independently by the enterprise. In other words, whether or not to sell, the transaction must ultimately be completed legally and compliantly under the Chinese regulatory framework.
That is to say, even if TikTok wants to sell, such a transaction cannot bypass the approval procedures of Chinese regulators.
Image source: metrotvnews
TikTok Exploring Another Path? New App May Launch in U.S. in September
Amid continuous rumors of a sale, there are also reports that TikTok may be preparing a Plan B.
According to U.S. tech media The Information, TikTok is developing a new standalone app specifically for the U.S. market, with a target launch date of September 5, 2025, just before the "sell or ban" bill takes effect.
The media, citing internal information, said that the existing TikTok U.S. app will cease service in March 2026, and users will need to migrate to the new app to continue using the service. If this migration plan is true, it will involve more than 170 million U.S. users, making it an unprecedented move.
TikTok has not yet publicly responded to this plan, but the general view is that this "relaunch" approach may be a technical response the platform is considering under policy pressure.
Image source: Lianhe Zaobao
Final Words
Whether the acquisition is true or not, whether it is completed or not, the geopolitical and regulatory pressures faced by Chinese enterprises in overseas markets have become a real challenge that brands must face in globalization.
For TikTok, the next three months will be crucial: whether to sell, respond to the ban, or launch a new app as an alternative, all will require extremely high strategic precision and execution speed.
The market's attention is still focused on this "most politically charged" tug-of-war among global tech companies.
