WASHINGTON: U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday extended a delay on enforcing a ban against TikTok until December 16.&nbsp;This marks the fourth postponement of a law designed to force the app&#39;s sale from its Chinese owner.The announcement, made through an executive order, came despite Trump telling reporters Tuesday that the United States and China had reached a deal over a new ownership structure for the hugely popular video-sharing app.The extension builds on previous delays issued in January, April and June as the administration navigates the complex legal and national security implications surrounding TikTok&#39;s operations in the United States.The latest delay was set to expire on Wednesday.&lsquo;We have a deal&rsquo;&quot;We have a deal on TikTok, I&#39;ve reached a deal with China, I&#39;m going to speak to President Xi (Jinping) on Friday to confirm everything up,&quot; Trump told reporters on Monday as he left the White House for a state visit to Britain.&quot;We have a group of very big companies that want to buy it,&quot; Trump said, adding that he would &quot;hate to see value like that thrown out the window.&quot;China also confirmed what both sides on Monday called the &quot;framework&quot; of a deal that would be finalized in the phone call between the two leaders on Friday.TikTok &mdash; which boasts almost two billion global users &mdash; is owned by China-based ByteDance.According to the Wall Street Journal, TikTok&#39;s U.S. business would be controlled by an investor consortium including cloud giant Oracle and venture capital giant Andreessen Horowitz, with the Chinese owners keeping 20% of the U.S. business.Both companies have very close ties to the Trump White House and Oracle already plays a major role in TikTok&#39;s U.S. infrastructure.Fate of TikTok&rsquo;s algorithm&nbsp;One of the major questions is the fate of TikTok&#39;s powerful algorithm that saw the app become one of the world&#39;s most popular sources of online entertainment.The preliminary deal was negotiated over two days of talks that ended Monday in Madrid between U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng.Under the order, the U.S. Justice Department is prohibited from taking enforcement action not only during the extended period, but also retroactively for any conduct that occurred since the ban was originally to come into force, on January 19, 2025 &mdash; the day before Trump&#39;s inauguration.The legislation was designed to address national security concerns.The app has faced scrutiny from U.S. officials.TikTok has repeatedly denied sharing user data with Chinese authorities and has challenged various restrictions in federal court.<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;" id="isPasted">China terms deal a &#39;win-win&#39;,<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;" id="isPasted">&nbsp;will review app&#39;s technology and IP transfers<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Later in the day, China called the framework deal reached in Madrid a &quot;win-win&quot;, adding it would review TikTok&#39;s technology exports and intellectual property licensing, in a state media editorial.<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">&quot;China reached the relevant consensus with the United States on the TikTok issue because it is based on the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation,&quot; the official People&#39;s Daily said in a commentary.<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The article was signed &quot;Zhong Sheng&quot; or &quot;Voice of China&quot;, a term the paper of the governing Communist Party uses to express views on foreign policy.<span style="font-size: 18px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">&quot;China will review matters related to TikTok&#39;s technology exports and intellectual property licensing in accordance with the law,&quot; the commentary added.

Viral

China terms deal a 'win-win', will review app's technology and IP transfers.



Trump extends delay on U.S. TikTok ban until mid-December

Romesa Umar

ISLAMABAD: At least 14 people were killed and dozens injured in Kathmandu on Monday after police opened fire on protesters storming Nepal&rsquo;s Federal Parliament in response to a controversial social media ban, Reuters reported.The unrest broke out outside the parliament building, where thousands of mostly young demonstrators had gathered. Witnesses said police fired live rounds, rubber bullets, and tear gas after some protesters breached barricades, set fire to an ambulance, and attempted to enter the compound.Others hurled stones at security forces and transported the wounded away on motorcycles.The protests were sparked by the government&rsquo;s decision to block major social media platforms that failed to meet new regulatory requirements. Under the new policy, platforms were ordered to register with Nepal&rsquo;s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, open local offices, and appoint official representatives by a September 3 deadline.Platforms that complied and those blockedOfficials said apps like TikTok, Viber, and WeTalk complied with the rules. However, Meta-owned Messenger and others were blocked.A government official told Reuters that the restrictions aim to curb fake accounts and rising cybercrime, which authorities claim threaten national unity.Popularity of Social Media ApplicationsThe ban has hit Nepal&rsquo;s diaspora community especially hard. Roughly 7.5% of Nepal&rsquo;s population lives abroad and relies on messaging apps to stay in touch with family.According to the Nepal Telecommunications Authority&rsquo;s 2021 report, over 90% of the country&rsquo;s 30 million people use the internet. Many have already shifted to platforms like Viber to maintain communication.&ldquo;The new generation in Nepal&rdquo;Protesters argue that the ban restricts free expression and blocks critical communication tools. Chants like &ldquo;Shut down corruption, not social media,&rdquo; and &ldquo;Youth against corruption,&rdquo; echoed through the crowd, reflecting wider dissatisfaction with government transparency and governance.The situation escalated rapidly, merging frustrations over corruption, censorship, and what many see as an authoritarian overreach into digital life.While the government has not declared a state of emergency, officials have warned of stricter crackdowns if the violence continues.The incident marks one of the deadliest outbreaks of civil unrest in Nepal in recent years and underscores a growing clash between the state&rsquo;s push for digital regulation and the demands of a young, connected population seeking free access to global platforms.

Asia

At least 14 killed in Kathmandu as protests against Nepal’s ban on 26 social media platforms escalate into violent clashes with police.

Articles tagged with "Social Media"

Trump extends delay on U.S. TikTok ban until mid-December

14 killed as Nepal protests erupt over social media ban