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The Chinese government is considering a plan to have Elon Musk buy TikTok’s U.S. operations to prevent the app from being effectively banned, Bloomberg News reported. reported on monday.
The report, citing unnamed sources, said the contingency plan would allow the U.S. to decide whether to support legislation that would require China-based ByteDance to sell TikTok’s U.S. operations by Jan. 19. It is reported that this is one of several options China is considering as the Supreme Court makes its decision.
After that deadline, third-party internet service providers will be penalized for supporting TikTok’s operations in the country.
According to Bloomberg, the plan would see Musk oversee both X, which he currently owns, and TikTok’s U.S. operations. However, the report notes that the plan is still preliminary, as Chinese government officials have not yet decided whether to proceed with the plan.
The report said it was unclear whether ByteDance knew about the Chinese government’s plans or its involvement in TikTok’s discussions with Musk. Chinese officials are discussing contingency plans for the future of TikTok in the United States as part of larger talks on cooperation with the president-elect. donald trumpthe report added.
“We cannot be expected to comment on pure fiction,” a TikTok spokesperson said in an email to CNBC. X did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Supreme Court last week heard oral arguments on a law that President Joe Biden signed in April that could ban TikTok. TikTok’s legal team claims the law violates the free speech rights of millions of users in the US, while the US government says ByteDance’s ownership of TikTok is a national security risk. Said to bring.
TikTok could turn to Trump when his second term begins on January 20, as the Supreme Court appears to be on the government’s side. Trump supported banning TikTok during his first administration, but has since reversed his stance on the issue. Late last month, he prompted The Supreme Court intervened to give Biden time to find a “political solution” and forced a delay in implementing his ban.
President Trump’s statements regarding TikTok began to change in response to his comments. met in february and billionaire Jeff Yas, a major Republican donor and major investor in ByteDance, who also owns an ownership stake in Trump’s social media company Truth Social.
clock: SCOTUS hears TikTok ban case
