By Victor Reklaitis
Trump’s efforts to get a TikTok spinoff have been caught up in broader U.S.-China trade tensions
TikTok is getting ready to introduce a standalone app for the American market, according to a Reuters report citing unnamed employees of the social-media platform.
An app just for U.S. users – which looks set to run on an algorithm and data system that’s separate from TikTok’s global platform – would pave the way for a possible sale of that business, the report said.
A U.S. law that was enacted in April 2024 amid broad bipartisan support had aimed to ban TikTok nationwide as of Jan. 19 as long as the platform remains controlled by its Chinese parent company, ByteDance Ltd. Supporters of the law have argued that the video-sharing app is a threat to national security and have raised data-privacy concerns.
But President Donald Trump has kept ordering his Justice Department not to enforce the law while expressing admiration for how TikTok helped him reach younger voters during the 2024 White House race. In addition, Trump has indicated that his administration’s efforts to get TikTok’s parent to sell off the U.S. operations have been caught up in broader trade fights between Washington and Beijing.
If TikTok ever were to go away in the U.S., analysts have said that would boost the platform’s publicly traded competitors. The video-sharing app’s rivals include Meta Platforms Inc.’s (META) Facebook and Instagram, Google’s (GOOG) (GOOGL) YouTube and Snap Inc.’s (SNAP) Snapchat.
TikTok didn’t immediately respond to MarketWatch’s request for comment.
-Victor Reklaitis
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07-09-25 1223ET
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