After it was publicly revealed that a House-voted TikTok ban would threaten the future of the interactive social app, eagle-eyed influencers and consistent users on the platform have been scurrying to figure out how the social site will stay active — and that entirely depends on if China will sell the app or not.
As stated in the legislation passed by the House, ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, would need to divest in the next six months in order for TikTok to remain active in the U.S. for its users. In the aftermath of the proposed ban, a multitude of influencers and casual users on the app are now notably frustrated — especially those who use the app as a form of profit and as an avenue to make money. And yet, the U.S. government has made it clear where they stand on the monumental issue.
Despite the overwhelming backlash, massive petitions, and nationwide outrage, the fact still remains that ByteDance would need to sell its TikTok stakes within the next few months so that Americans can continue to access the ever-popular app.
So, will China actually sell TikTok?
Based on the grounds that the U.S. government believes the current state of TikTok “threatens national security” due to the possibility of China using the app to spy on American citizens, it certainly comes as no surprise that the government would be eager to remove ByteDance’s involvement with the social app.
That being said, it’s now become evident that ByteDance seemingly has no plans to divest from TikTok, explaining that it would work to go against a forced sale of stakes. In addition, both ByteDance and Beijing have insisted that a block of TikTok’s sale will take place if need be.
As it stands at the current time of this writing, it doesn’t appear that ByteDance will sell its stake in TikTok. Plans can still change in the future, however, so perhaps it’s not yet time for TikTokers to fully panic.
