ByteDance won’t sell TikTok, would rather pull it from the US

ByteDance plans to exhaust every legal strategy it can, but if it comes down to it, the company won't sell TikTok.

ByteDance won’t sell TikTok, would rather pull it from the US
Tiktok stock photo on smartphone
Credit: Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
  • Anonymous sources have told a reliable news outlet that ByteDance will not sell TikTok.
  • In light of the United States ban, ByteDance will fight using all legal maneuvers possible.
  • However, if all else fails, the company would rather pull TikTok from the US than sell it.

Earlier this week, President Joe Biden signed an international aid bill that included a ban on TikTok. The video-sharing social network is owned by Chinese company ByteDance and is believed to be a potential national security threat due to its overwhelming popularity in the US combined with ByteDance’s ties to the Chinese government.

Biden has given ByteDance nine months to sell TikTok to a non-Chinese firm or face a full-on ban across the US. Now, a new report from Reuters suggests ByteDance has no intentions to sell TikTok. Instead, the company will try to win in court. If that doesn’t work, the company is prepared to oblige with the ban — but it will not sell.