It seems TikTok’s clock isn’t going ticktock. President Donald Trump is once again giving the app a lifeline, extending the deadline for its Chinese owner, ByteDance, to sell its U.S. operations — for the third time.
The move, confirmed by the White House on Tuesday, pushes enforcement of the federal ban to mid-September and gives negotiators another 90 days to cobble together a deal that satisfies both Washington and Beijing. Trump had told reporters aboard Air Force One on Tuesday that he expected to extend the deadline.
“Probably have to get China approval, but I think we’ll get it,” Trump said. “I think President Xi will ultimately approve it.”
The White House framed the extension on Wednesday as a practical necessity to “ensure this deal is closed so that the American people can continue to use TikTok with the assurance that their data is safe and secure,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said, adding that the president doesn’t want TikTok “to go dark.”
That’s a far cry from the administration’s original posture, which promised a hardline stance against Chinese ownership of U.S. user data. The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACA), passed in April 2024, set a January 19 deadline for divestment, with a single 90-day extension permitted if real progress was underway.
That extension had already been invoked twice (after the first deadline passed in April and the second in mid-June), and critics argue the law is being stretched past its limits. Senator Mark Warner (D-Va.) has called the postponed sale deadlines “against the law,” and Congress’s frequent extended deadlines have frustrated lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
So far, there’s little evidence that a sale is imminent. Oracle $ORCL, Walmart $WMT, and a shortlist of financial backers have circled TikTok’s U.S. operations, but talks have reportedly stalled, thanks in part to rising tensions with Beijing and a fresh wave of Trump-imposed tariffs. Former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt has been vocal about his $20 billion bid for the app — and his plans to transform it. But ByteDance is holding tight. The deal’s biggest sticking point remains TikTok’s prized recommendation algorithm, which Chinese officials consider a sensitive export.
Meanwhile, app stores are stuck in purgatory.
Under the law, Apple $AAPL and Google $GOOGL are required to pull TikTok from their platforms if ByteDance doesn’t divest. But Trump’s reassurances have kept enforcement at bay — for now. That hasn’t satisfied shareholders: Alphabet is already facing a lawsuit from an investor alleging that the company is exposing itself to legal risk by continuing to distribute the app.
For now, TikTok remains available and fully operational. But the clock is still ticking. TikTok has three more months to broker a deal that satisfies Washington, placates Beijing, and somehow preserves the magic of the “For You” page. Failing that, TikTok could be back to the ban hammer — unless, of course, Trump finds another magic snooze button to press.