US threatens to ban TikTok if Chinese company Bytedance doesn’t sell shares

The US government threatened the owning Chinese company Tick ​​tock with the social network being banned nationwide if it doesn’t sell its shares in the popular app, according to various US media outlets.

TikTok, whose parent company is Chinese tech company ByteDance, confirmed the information to the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday. Earlier this month, the United States attempted legislation to ban it nationwide.

The US Foreign Investment Committee is the one that is said to have given the ultimatum to the owners of TikTok, according to the New York media. The White House has not yet ruled on the matter.

The measure, the most forceful yet against the social network by Joe Biden’s government, comes amid pressure from lawmakers to limit the platform, which has more than 100 million users in the country.

Last week, General Paul Nakasone, director of the National Security Agency (NSA) expressed to the Senate Armed Services Committee his concern about TikTok “because of the information it possesses, its algorithm and its influence”.

Congressional Administration has already vetoed the download and use of TikTok from all government mobile devices.

TikTok’s parent company is Chinese tech company ByteDance, which some criticize for having ties to the Communist Party of China, though TikTok denies those allegations, saying it doesn’t censor content or grant the Chinese government access to its data.

The White House applauded a bill introduced in Congress last week that authorizes the executive branch to prevent some governments, including China, from exploiting the technology services operating in the country in a risky way.

Former US President Donald Trump (2017-2021) tried to veto TikTok, but after a lengthy legal battle it failed to materialize.

TikTok has more than 100 million users in the United States and has quickly become one of the most popular social networks in the world, especially among teenagers.

New in development