$14 billion deal keeps TikTok alive in U.S.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order approving a proposed $14 billion deal to keep TikTok operating in the U.S., with a new joint-venture company overseeing its U.S. business. ByteDance, TikTok’s China-based parent, would retain under 20% ownership if China signs off.

Why we care. This deal ends a years-long national security fight that nearly got TikTok banned in the U.S., where it has more than 150 million users. For advertisers, that means continued access to one of the fastest-growing platforms for reaching younger audiences. But political and regulatory uncertainty still hangs over TikTok, leaving questions about ad budgets and brand safety.

The details. Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX will control ~45% of TikTok U.S. ByteDance investors and new holders will own 35%.

  • Oracle CEO Larry Ellison and possibly Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch are linked to the ownership group.
  • The U.S. government will not hold an equity stake or “golden share.”
  • Trump said Chinese President Xi Jinping gave the deal a “go ahead,” though Beijing has not publicly confirmed.

The catch. Analysts say TikTok’s U.S. business is worth between $30 billion and $35 billion — more than twice the $14 billion figure cited by Vice President JD Vance. That gap raises questions about the price and what concessions were made to seal the deal.

What’s next. The deal still needs approval from China. For now, the DOJ has paused enforcement of the national security law until Dec. 16, giving TikTok time to finalize details.

Bottom line. The TikTok saga isn’t over, yet brands and advertisers can breathe easier – for now – as questions remain about stability, ad spend, and brand safety.

Search Engine Land is owned by Semrush. We remain committed to providing high-quality coverage of marketing topics. Unless otherwise noted, this page’s content was written by either an employee or a paid contractor of Semrush Inc.

About the Author

Anu Adegbola

Anu Adegbola has been Paid Media Editor of Search Engine Land since 2024. She covers paid search, paid social, retail media, video and more. In 2008, Anu’s career started with delivering digital marketing campaigns (mostly but not exclusively Paid Search) by building strategies, maximising ROI, automating repetitive processes and bringing efficiency from every part of marketing departments through inspiring leadership both on agency, client and marketing tech side. Outside editing Search Engine Land article she is the founder of PPC networking event – PPC Live and host of weekly podcast PPC Live The Podcast.
She is also an international speaker with some of the stages she has presented on being SMX (US, UK, Munich, Berlin), Friends of Search (Amsterdam, NL), brightonSEO, The Marketing Meetup, HeroConf (PPC Hero), SearchLove, BiddableWorld, SESLondon, PPC Chat Live, AdWorld Experience (Bologna, IT) and more.


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