The out-of-touch, should-be-pensioners in Congress really went and approved the bill banning TikTok, and while they say it’s down to a fear of the Chinese government spying on U.S. citizens, the real reason is rearing its ugly head.
That reason is money ⏤ always money. Greasy politicians, Wall Street billionaires, and tech company CEOs are already putting their bids down and preparing to purchase the hugely popular app. Meanwhile, the everyday people who enjoy the app get to sit and watch the rich folks fight over it while they face the reality that one of life’s few small pleasures is about to be taken away. Amongst the vultures circling the potentially soon-to-be-dead app is none other than the former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. But is the buyout of TikTok a done deal?
Steven Mnuchin’s investor group
It was reported back in the middle of March by CNBC that Mnuchin was gathering a group of investors to buy out TikTok. This was before the legislation to ban the app was signed by Joe Biden. Speaking with the outlet, Mnuchin stated that, “I think the legislation should pass and I think it should be sold.” Well, he was right: the legislation has now passed, meaning TikTok’s owner, ByteDance, must either sell or face a ban in the U.S.
Clearly Mnuchin has seen the potential profits that the video-sharing app could bring and has decided he’d like a piece of that pie, but let’s slow down a minute here. Who says that ByteDance is even going to sell?
Would the buyout really be that easy?
Despite Mnuchin clearly making plans to buy TikTok, it’s not going to be that simple. The bill signed by Biden on April 24 gives the owners of the app 270 days to sell or else get banned and the CEO of TikTok has already stated that the company intends to fight the bill and win. According to Reuters, Shou Zi Chew confidently stated, “We aren’t going anywhere […] the facts and the Constitution are on our side and we expect to prevail again.” TikTok faced a forced sale or ban back in 2020 from then-president Donald Trump, at which point the company fought the ruling and ultimately didn’t have to comply. Could the same thing happen again?
It’s clear that the company doesn’t intend to give up without a fight, so Mnuchin’s little investor group might have jumped the gun here, as they are far from victory just yet. Of course, it’s a very real possibility that TikTok could lose the fight and face the option of being banned or sold. If that’s the case, then ByteDance will get the final say as to who buys the app. When facing the prospect of being sold in 2020, they rejected a joint offer from Microsoft and Walmart, so Mnuchin is going to have to come up with something better than whatever those two behemoth businesses were able to offer.
Even then, we haven’t considered the possibility that the company will outright refuse to sell. What happens then? It may just be the end of TikTok full stop, and if that’s the case, nobody wins; Steven Mnuchin, his investors, ByteDance, and the 170 million people in the U.S. that use the app will all lose out for no reason whatsoever.