Business & Economics
TikTok USDS Joint Venture Closes, Majority-U.S. Ownership Ends Ban Threat
On 22-23 Jan 2026 Washington and Beijing simultaneously approved and closed a deal that split TikTok’s U.S. business into a new company—TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC—allowing the app to keep operating past the 23 Jan legal deadline.
Focusing Facts
- Ownership: Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX lead an 80.1 % American-controlled stake; ByteDance is capped at 19.9 %.
- Trump’s fifth and final 120-day executive extension expired 23 Jan 2026, after which the 2024 Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act would have forced a shutdown.
- Adam Presser installed as CEO; the recommendation algorithm is now licensed to Oracle and will be retrained exclusively on U.S. data inside Oracle’s cloud.
Context
Washington has not compelled a Chinese tech firm to cede majority control like this since CFIUS forced Huawei to divest 3Leaf in 2011, echoing even earlier precedents such as the 1987 uproar over Toshiba’s U.S. subsidiary. The move reflects a broader century-long pattern of the U.S. insisting on domestic stewardship of communications infrastructure—from RCA’s 1927 broadcasting rules, through Cold-War CoCom export limits, to today’s data-sovereignty push. It also slots into the 2025 U.S.–China tariff cease-fire: both capitals needed a symbolic win before Trump’s planned April visit and the truce’s expiry late-2026. Whether this moment endures depends less on TikTok’s dance videos than on two systemic forces: the weaponisation of cross-border data flows and the rise of state-mandated algorithmic nationalism. If the joint venture model holds, historians in 2126 may cite it as the template for governing global AI platforms—or as a short-lived patch before a deeper U.S.–China tech bifurcation.
Perspectives
Pro-Trump conservative business media
e.g., Fox Business, Daily Times — Presents the TikTok spin-off as a clear victory for President Trump that protects U.S. data and keeps the app alive under majority-American control. Coverage spotlights Trump’s deal-making success while playing down ByteDance’s continuing stake and any lingering national-security doubts.
Tech industry commentary sites
e.g., Social Media Today, 9to5Mac — Stresses that TikTok still risks a ban or diminished user experience, warning that negotiations, algorithm retraining and political pushback could yet derail the platform. Speculative tone amplifies uncertainty to keep readers’ attention, sometimes overstating dangers now that a formal agreement exists.
Asia-Pacific press examining US-China relations
e.g., The Straits Times, TEMPO.CO — Frames the deal as evidence of a fragile but functioning U.S.–China trade truce, suggesting it lowers bilateral friction ahead of planned summits. Focus on diplomatic optics and mutual concessions underplays U.S. domestic security concerns and the possibility of future political reversal.