ByteDance may spin off TikTok as US company, report says

ByteDance, the parent company of short-video app TikTok, is looking at strategic alternatives, including a possible spin-off of Tiktok as a US company, according to the Hong Kong Economic Times, which cites sources with knowledge of the matter.

ByteDance has yet to respond to the report.

Previously, it was reported that ByteDance was planning to restructure TikTok, and that the company was considering either locating TikTok's headquarters overseas or setting up a new management board to ease U.S. politicians' concerns. 

TikTok does not yet have its own headquarters, and it has previously said that its five largest overseas offices are located in Los Angeles, New York, London, Dublin and Singapore.

The company has repeatedly denied allegations that it poses a threat to U.S. national security. “User security is of the utmost importance to TikTok – we are fully committed to respecting the privacy of our users,” a TikTok spokesperson had said.

However, even a spin-off may not solve the problem. 

White House adviser Peter Navarro said recently he expected U.S. President Donald Trump to take “strong action” against TikTok and WeChat for engaging in “information warfare” against the United States.

Even if TikTok is sold to an American buyer, it would not solve the problem, Navarro said.

“If TikTok separates as an American company, that doesn’t help us,” Navarro said. “Because it’s going to be worse – we’re going to have to give China billions of dollars for the privilege of having TikTok operate on U.S. soil.”

According to data analytics firm Sensor Tower, TikTok has been downloaded over  165 million times.

TikTok is owned by Chinese company ByteDance and has long insisted its business outside China, including content moderation and data policies, is not dictated by its managers within the mainland.