As part of its plan to see TikTok‘s algorithm transferred to new owners, US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick reportedly stated the platform would go dark in the US if China does not agree to US ownership.
Lutnick told a CNBC cable show the administration of President Donald Trump decided ByteDance-owned TikTok must “come out of Chinese control”.
“You can’t have Chinese control and have something on 100 million American phones,” he explained. “That’s just not okay.”
Last month President Trump extended the deadline for the sale of TiKTok to a US entity for the third time. Lutnick said ByteDance could still have a minority stake in TikTok, but “basically Americans will have control” over the technology and algorithm. Several entities have expressed interest in buying TikTok.
TikTok’s US prospects have been up in the air since legislation passed in 2024 to ban the service unless a domestic buyer was found. Former President Joe Biden and members of both political parties expressed concern it posed a national security risk. The US Supreme Court upheld the law banning the app unless it is sold to a US owner.
President Trump unsuccessfully tried to ban TikTok during his first term, but did an about turn when running for his second term. He joined the platform in 2024 and credits the social media’s youthful users for helping him win the presidential election in November 2024.
Source: Mobile World Live
Image Credit: TikTok
