TikTok denies its sale to Elon Musk to avoid closure in the United States: “Pure fiction”

TikTok, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, described this Tuesday as “pure fiction” the possibility that the Chinese authorities plan their venta a Elon Musk if the US Supreme Court finally upholds its closure.

“We cannot be expected to comment on something that is pure fiction”says a brief statement sent to the agency EFE by a TikTok spokesperson.

The response refers to an exclusive publication by Bloomberg this Tuesday indicating that the Chinese authorities evaluate how “possible option” the acquisition by the American tycoon Elon Muskowner of X and who will be part of the Administration of Donald Trumpof TikTok’s operations in the United States.

This possibility arises, according to Bloomberg, if TikTok fails to evade its ban in the United Stateswaiting for the Supreme Court to decide whether to support the law that can close the social network in the country if it is not separated from its parent company, ByteDancebefore January 19as stipulated by the standard.

The regulation, approved by the US Congress last April by Democrats and Republicans, gave the Chinese company ByteDance nine months to find an investor from a country that is not considered a “adversary” of the United States.

US lawmakers justified their decision by arguing that the platform represents a threat to national security due to the possibility of the Chinese Government accessing user data.

For its part, China has criticized the “repression” against TikTok by the US on several occasions, ensuring that it is “an intimidation tactic” that it will end up “turning against” the North American country.

He TikTok closure in the United States could come just one day before Trump returns to the presidency on January 20.

Although in his first term (2017-2021) the Republican tried to ban the social network, on this occasion he asked the US Supreme Court to paralyze the entry into force of the law until he was in the presidency after promising in the campaign that “would save TikTok”.

Musk, who has become one of Trump’s closest allies, has important interests in Chinawhere is the main production base worldwide of his company Tesla.

The tycoon already defended last April that “TikTok should not be banned in the United States. (…) Doing so would go against freedom of expressionand that is not what the United States stands for.”

China has a ‘golden share’ in ByteDance that gives it right to veto about any decision.