Finally, President Donald Trump beamed on Truth Social last week, TikTok¡¯s U.S. business is in the hands of ¡°Great American Patriots and Investors.¡± He thanked Vice President JD Vance for bringing the meandering saga of the app¡¯s future to a ¡°very dramatic, final and beautiful conclusion.¡±
But to call the saga over ¡ª as many headlines did ¡ª would be unwise. Its challenges are only just beginning.
Trump said he was ¡°so happy¡± to have saved the app. So, too, no doubt, are the around 200 million people in his country who use it and make money from it. No price was revealed for the transaction, though Vance said the app was worth $14 billion when he first touted this deal last year ¡ª about what its U.S. advertising business makes annually. Its fledgling e-commerce arm is projected to generate $23.4 billion in sales this year, surpassing the online presence of Target. To what degree the new joint venture with Oracle and other investors will be in a position to continue bankrolling TikTok Shop¡¯s aggressive expansion isn¡¯t clear.
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