The US Commerce Department has issued a new order to block people in the US from downloading the popular video-sharing app TikTok as of September 20th, Reuters first reported Friday.
The full order was published by the Department of Commerce on Friday morning. “Any transaction by any person, or with respect to any property, subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, with ByteDance Ltd,” the order reads, “shall be prohibited to the extent permitted under applicable law.” It is set to take effect on September 20th.
Over the last few weeks, TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, has been engaged in talks with US companies like Microsoft and Oracle to create a new company, TikTok Global, that would meet the Trump administration’s concerns over user data security. Earlier this month, President Trump sparked negotiations after calling for US TikTok operations to be shut down unless sold to a US company by September 15th. Microsoft has dropped out of the bidding, leaving Oracle and Walmart as the leading candidates to hold stake in the new TikTok company. Still, the administration has yet to strike a deal that meets all of its requirements.
Officials told Reuters that a Commerce Department rule banning US downloads of TikTok and other Chinese-owned apps like the messaging platform WeChat could be issued as early as Friday. That rule would reportedly go into effect Sunday, September 20th, banning new downloads of both WeChat and TikTok.
Reuters said that the administration’s ban would bar Apple and Google from offering any of these Chinese-owned apps in their app stores for US users. The tech companies would still be allowed to offer TikTok to users outside of the US. US-based companies would not be barred from conducting business with the Chinese-owned apps, like how Walmart and Starbucks allow users to make transactions through WeChat.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross told Reuters Friday, “We have taken significant action to combat China’s malicious collection of American citizens’ personal data, while promoting our national values, democratic rules-based norms, and aggressive enforcement of U.S. laws and regulations.”
Full Content: Reuters
Featured News
EU Regulators Set to Clear Microsoft’s $13B OpenAI Investment
Apr 17, 2024 by
CPI
Biden Pledges to Block US Steel Acquisition by Japanese Firm
Apr 17, 2024 by
CPI
Canada Targets Tech Titans with New Digital Tax in 2024
Apr 17, 2024 by
CPI
EU Privacy Watchdog Calls for Meta to Offer Ad-Free Option
Apr 17, 2024 by
CPI
Japan’s Antitrust Overhaul Targets Tech Titans Like Apple
Apr 17, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – China Edition – Year of the Dragon
Apr 16, 2024 by
CPI
Review Logic and Rules for Concentrations of Undertakings that Do Not Meet the Standard of Notification
Apr 16, 2024 by
CPI
China’s Review of Semiconductor Transactions
Apr 16, 2024 by
CPI
Key Challenges and Tips for Merger Control Filing in China for Listed Companies
Apr 16, 2024 by
CPI
Key Point Review: China SPC Antitrust Judgments in 2023
Apr 16, 2024 by
CPI