TikTok finalizes deal with China to avoid U.S. ban, White House official says

Washington — A year after a law that effectively banned TikTok from the U.S. went into effect, China and the U.S. have signed off on a deal, according to a White House official. 

The bipartisan law, passed in 2024, required that TikTok's China-based parent company, ByteDance, sever ties with the social media platform's American operations or lose access to U.S. app stores and web-hosting services. 

The law, which was unanimously upheld by the Supreme Court, made it unlawful for app stores to offer updates or new downloads after Jan. 19, 2025. But President Trump has issued executive orders every few months directing the Justice Department not to penalize the tech companies who host TikTok on their platforms. 

CBS News previously reported that TikTok's U.S. operations will be held by a consortium of firms including Oracle and Silver Lake. (Oracle was cofounded by Larry Ellison, whose son David Ellison is the chairman and CEO of Paramount Skydance, which is the parent company of CBS News. The Ellison family owns a controlling interest in Paramount Skydance.)

Details about the arrangement, including who controls the platform's algorithm, have not yet been disclosed. Semafor first reported that the U.S. and China had finalized a deal. It's unclear how the Chinese government plans to move forward. Its statements about a forced sale have been vague, though it has said that any agreement would have to comply with Chinese laws and regulations. 

This is a developing story and will be updated.